Unexpected Circumstances
by bucky.bae
Summary: Alba Herrera was bound to make some bad decisions after breaking up with her boyfriend of ten years. Sharing a brief, passionate night with a handsome stranger felt like a step in the right direction. The only problem? Her handsome stranger was Steve Rogers, and their 'brief' night ends in an unplanned pregnancy. Starts after AoU, will eventually follow CA:CW.
1. Chapter 1

The bar was dark and hazy, filled with the last patrons of the evening. Alba sat on one of the high stools in front of the bar, swirling a glass of white wine and looking off into space.

What a shitty night.

It all started with that damn cocktail party. She knew her ex, Marcus, was going to be there. I mean, they were both lawyers. They worked for partner firms. The whole point of them moving out to New York three years ago was to get jobs that would allow them to work closely. Except now, Alba wanted to be as far away from him as possible.

The cheating scum actually brought his side piece to the work function. It didn't matter that Alba caught them having sex in their bedroom. No, he had the nerve to stand there and telling anyone who would listen about his new girlfriend. His new girl, who was nearly ten years younger and hadn't even finished college.

Yeah, Alba was pissed. But on the other hand…she understood. Marcus had always been the weird one in law school. She was the fat one. Their camaraderie grew into a relationship eventually. Now that they'd both passed the bar and acquired flashy jobs in the city, things were turning around. Marcus hired a fancy chef and a personal trainer. His yellowed smile had been covered by perfect veneers, and he had finally mastered the easy confidence of someone who didn't give a damn. Plus add in the hundreds of thousands they made each year, and he was practically a gold-digger magnet. Too bad he couldn't see the money signs shining in his new girlfriend's eyes. Hopefully he was smart enough to sign a prenup.

She finished gulping down her glass and signaled for another one. The bartender came back and promptly topped off her glass.

She stayed his hand before he walked away. "You know what? Just leave the bottle." He hesitated, but eventually left it and went to attend another man at the end of the bar.

"You gonna drink that whole thing by yourself?" Alba almost rolled her eyes at the intrusion of the masculine voice. This was not the time for some sleaze to try and chat her up. She took another gulp of wine to comfort herself before turning to face the incomer.

He was _not_ a sleaze. Jesus.

The man sitting a few seats away was…perfect. He wore a casual button-down shirt that'd been neatly tucked into his black pants and carefully cleaned shoes. It was a simple combination, but the strong planes of his body made it the perfect canvas. His strong, broad shoulders gave way to long arms corded with muscle. Alba was sure this guy was one of those people that had like 0% fat on his body. But damn, he looked good. She glanced at the five o'clock shadow on his jaw and ignored the appreciate clench coming from her ovaries.

He met her gaze and gave her a genuinely friendly grin, gesturing at the bottle of wine in front of her. "Rough day?"

Alba stared at him like an idiot before remembering how to speak. "You can say that." She glanced at the beer in front of him. "Same for you?"

"No, not at all. I had a very productive day." The way he spoke, so matter-of-factly, made Alba grin.

"If your day was so great, why are you drowning your sorrows with the rest of us?" He made a _touché_ gesture, angling his head toward her, and took a pull of his beer.

"I guess I'm not ready to back home."

"Too far?"

"Too empty." He clarified. "Sometimes home doesn't really feel like home, does it?"

"You're right." Alba agreed. Alba motioned the man to sit beside her and extended her hand. "I'm Alba."

"Steve." His large hand engulfed hers in a searing heat. Alba made sure not to look like an idiot by clinging to his manly hand for too long. After all, men like him do not make passes at women like her. He was probably just bored and wanted someone to talk to.

They drank in silence for a moment. Alba glanced at Steve to find him giving her red dress an appreciative glance. She resisted the urge to grin, _I guess men like him do make passes at women like me_. Hell, at least _someone_ noticed it. _I mean, the whole reason to buy it was to get Marcus to eat his feelings._ This dress is probably the best thing she's ever worn. It was a bright red sexy slip dress that clung to her overblown hourglass figure but shied away from the softness of her stomach. In her office suits she looked chubby at best, but this dress made her look like a caribbean pinup. Not skinny or toned by any stretch of the imagination, but sexy nonetheless.

Steve finally looked up and froze, realizing he was well and truly caught. He stared at the floor as the tips of his ears turned bright pink.

God, this man was unbelievably adorable.

"It's okay to look, you know." Alba assured him. He glanced up in surprise. "I mean, I think that this is the best I've ever looked. I was trying to get someone's attention. Not you. But someone. Didn't work out. He didn't really care so uh,"

"He must have been out of his mind."

"I'm sorry?"

"The man you wore the dress for. He must be crazy, because you're the most beautiful woman I've seen in—a long time." He took another glance at the dress, his eyes trapped at the place where her hips flared from her waist.

Alba paused. Where she would normally feel uncomfortable from men's leering compliments, Steve was nothing but respectful. The fact that he was trying his hardest not to stare at her ass proved it.

"Thank you."

"Who was he?"

Alba hesitated. Did she really want to open up to a complete stranger? But she was already in a bar, already pretty drunk. Fuck it.

"My ex-fiancee, Marcus. I caught him cheating on me two months ago. We had this work thing tonight, so I knew he was going to be there."

Steve looked at her curiously. "Did you want him back?"

"God, no! I don't know, I just wanted to make him regret it a little. He always acted like he was doing me a favor by being with me." She explained.

"I take it didn't work?"

Alba sighed into her glass. "Nope. He brought the other girl to the work function. Acted like I never even existed, right up until he cornered me at the open bar."

"What an ass."

"Yeah, he is. Wanna know what he told me?" She didn't wait for him to answer, instead turning in heat seat to huddle next to him. "He said 'If you'd just kept be satisfied maybe I wouldn't have had to look for sex elsewhere'. Like he couldn't just keep in his pants!" Steve's eyes widened, but Alba was too caught in her rant to notice.

"I mean, _I'm_ not the one who couldn't last longer than two minutes! He graduated from law school, and I bet if you gave him a diagram of a vagina he'd hardly be able to find the right hole to stick it into." Steve sputtered his beer mid-swing, holding back a chuckle. He forgot how forward women could be these days.

Alba poured herself another glass of wine and turned to meet his gaze. "Can I tell you something?"

He nodded. "Please."

"He never managed to give me an orgasm." Steve decided to put down his drink before accidentally choking on it.

"What? I'm sorry, how long were you together?"

"Nine years."

He cringed. "Jesus. A decade of bad sex. And you were gonna marry this guy?"

Alba shrugged. "I know. It seems kind of crazy. But the physical stuff isn't everything."

"But it is a big part of it." Steve insisted. "He must have made you very happy for you to put up with that for so long."

He observed his companion as she took a sip of her drink and stared forward resolutely.

"Actually…" She began, "He didn't make me that happy. It was just…routine. But I couldn't very well just break up with me because he couldn't keep me satisfied!"

Steve couldn't help but point out the irony. "…Isn't that what he did with you?" She thought it over for a minute.

"Huh. I guess you're right." The realization was freeing. "If he went to hook up with other people, I can too. I can have sex. _Good_ sex." Steve grinned at her tipsy rambling. She gazed into his eyes, and he felt as if he'd been punched in the gut. They looked like pools of melted chocolate, and even Steve could understand the flash of desire in them.

"…You seem like you know what that's like." Suddenly he understood where this was going. Part of him wanted to pack her into a taxi and have her delivered home. This wasn't what he had in mind when he set out for this pub. He just wanted companionship. The lull of conversation to distract him from the sense of loneliness he felt. But now he had a beautiful woman looking at him like he was the last man on Earth…

He wanted to be selfish.

Alba awoke the next morning with a splintering headache. She shielded her eyes from the sunlight pouring into the bedroom and turned in her bed, away from the windows. What she wasn't counting on was hitting the hard, muscled body next to hers.

 _What the hell…?_

She glanced at the person beside her slowly and froze. It was Steve. From the bar. His perfectly chiseled chest rose and fell as he continued to sleep peacefully. She watched his illuminated, upturned face for a second, sure she had seen him before their previous night. There was something so familiar about his features. The only thing that seemed to be out of place was his disheveled bed hair…and Alba suddenly remembered who turned his hair into the disaster it was. Their previous night began to race across her mind.

Alba flushed as she remembered how they stumbled into her apartment sometime after the bar closed. She didn't hesitate to jump Steve's bones. His strong arms carried her as if she weighed nothing, only to set her out on her kitchen island to work hot kisses down her neck.

Another memory replaced the old one, only this one featured Steve laying on her bed as she moved over him.

Had she _really_ done that?

She glanced at Steve once more and this time took her time, silently congratulating herself. This guy was the definition of a beefcake. Even now, Alba resisted the urge to run her hands along the firm muscles of his biceps and give them a good squeeze. She'd never seen guns that big before up close, and he wasn't even flexing!

He was leagues better than Marcus. And in the sack? Forget about it. Let's just say she now knew what it was like sharing an orgasm with her partner. Multiple orgasms. This dude had the stamina of an animal. It was a whole new world, and she was never going back.

Alba quietly put on one of her oversized t-shirts and crept into the bathroom. Once she was safely inside, she carried out her morning routine, throughly washing her face and brushing her teeth. At the last minute, she decided to hop in the shower, making sure to exfoliate and shave…just in case. Okay. Who was she kidding?

She was going for a second round as soon as Steve woke up.

Once everything had been shaved and moisturized Alba gave herself a once over in the mirror, deciding to put on a bit of makeup. She was pretty sure it was completely unnecessary, but part of her was scared of stepping into her bedroom. I mean, what do you say to the stranger that just happens to give you the best sex of your life?

She'd never done this before. One night stands had never been her style in college. What was the proper one night stand etiquette? Did she make him breakfast? Coffee? Did she hide out in the bathroom to make the morning after less awkward for the both of them?

Fortunately, the question had already been answered when Alba entered her bedroom.

"So he just pulled a fuck and run?" Alba put her face in her hands and convinced tried to convince herself that inviting her best friend over for dinner had been a good idea.

It wasn't working.

"I guess? I don't know, Lorrie. One second he was sleeping next to me and the next there was no trace of him ever being there."

"Did he at least give you his name?"

"Steve." Lorie scrunched her nose.

"Sounds so…vanilla. Missionary style Steve."

Alba grinned despite herself. "Trust me, there was nothing vanilla about it." Lorrie snorted.

"Please. You've been having sex with Marcus for the past nine years, and I'm pretty sure _anyone_ is better than him." They both laughed over their glasses of wine. Alba sighed happily, finally glad to laugh over her ex than cry about him. Yeah, the sex with her ex sucked, but it wasn't everything. She really thought their relationship was going to end in marriage. Stability. But the more time passed, the more Alba realized she was better off without him.

Lorrie's face sobered, and she peered at Alba seriously. "How are you doing with everything?"

"Fine. It doesn't really hurt anymore. If anything I'm just…disappointed by all the time I wasted on him. I can't believe I actually thought having a family with him was a good idea. We had been trying for like, two years." Lorie nodded understandingly, remembering all those days Alba would beat herself up after not managing to get pregnant.

"Just…think about it as a blessing in disguise."

"Yeah. But now here I am back at square one with no hope in sight." Lorie reached out to the girl beside her and pulled her into a hug.

"Oh, Alba. There's always hope. At the risk of sounding like a corny bastard, sometimes you find love when you least expect it." Alba grinned and leaned into her friend's embrace.

"I don't care how corny it is, I hope you're right."

* * *

A/N: Hey everyone! Welcome to my fic! I've honestly been playing this idea for a long time now. I've always thought Steve would make a wonderful father, and now I get to write about it :) I mean c'mom…Alba is about to win the baby daddy lottery. There will be lots of awkward, sweet, fluffy, (mildly) angsty, and lol moments so make sure to stay tuned.

P.S. I have yet to be pregnant to if any of you mommies or expecting mommies out there wanna share some of ur fave (or worst) moments throughout your pregnancy I would really appreciate it!


	2. Chapter 2

New York City, NY | 0800 Hours

 _Six Weeks Later_

"Alba Herrera? Dr. Gerandy will see you now." The lone woman in the waiting room looked up from a stack of files and quickly scrambled to her feet, stuffing the client folders into her oversized purse. After being weighed and measured, she was led to one of the smaller consultation rooms and wasted no time jumping back to the client files. Alba had been forced to squeeze in a meeting with a client later in the day, which now meant that these files had to get analyzed before she even stepped into her office if she wanted to make her schedule.

She continued to peer down at the stack of papers on her lap and scribbled furiously, taking care to note how she was planning to approach this particular case and points to clarify with her client during their meeting tomorrow. The door opened and closed, but she didn't bother looking up at her doctor.

The woman who entered the room snorted. "Well, good morning to you too, bitch." Alba finally put her work down and grinned up at Lorrie, who was feeling the pockets of her white lab coat for her pen. Her friend finally took a seat in the doctor's stool and spun around to thumb through her file.

"So we're doing the yearly physical, right?"

"That's right, Doc." Lorrie got to her feet and pulled out her trusty stethoscope, going over the basic lung and heart examinations first. The whole thing went by quite fast, and by the end of the hour they were wrapping up the yearly checkup with the lifestyle questionnaire.

"Any problems sleeping?"

"Nope." Lorrie sat back in her stool and clicked her pen as she jotted down notes into her file.

"How would you describe your diet? What is your activity level?"

"I'm eating fine, I guess. I cut out all that takeout that I was having at least year's checkup, so fresher food. Light on the exercise, though." She snickered. Lorrie rolled her eyes but grinned anyway, putting on her 'doctor' face and trying to ask the questions as professionally as possible.

"When was your last period?" Alba paused. Usually she could remember very clearly when her last period was but now…the details were foggy. She quickly dug into her oversized purse and plucked out her yearly agenda, where she had made a habit of jotting down her monthly cycles after starting to try to have a baby.

She searched through her calendar carefully and found…nothing.

Had she forgotten to write it down? Immediately, her brain recoiled at the idea. She didn't forget these things, hadn't for years. Which only left one option:

She was late. Like a cannonball crashing into her, she was assaulted by the memories of the night she shared with Steve, and quite suddenly felt as if her stomach had bottomed out and she was going to throw up at the same time.

Lorrie made no mistake in interpreting her friend's panicked face and suddenly became very serious. "How late is your period?" Alba flipped through her little agenda again and took a deep breath.

"I'm two weeks late." Her friend took a grim sigh.

"When you slept with Steve, did you use protection?" Alba had to comb through the hazy memories of that evening, but the answer didn't fail her.

"Yes. We used condoms." Lorrie made a thoughtful face and began speaking slowly.

"Alba, you know that they're not 100% effective. Sometimes, on very rare occasions and under very special circumstances, pregnancies can still take place." Alba wanted to scream.

"Lor, I've been trying to get pregnant with my ex for two years. You're telling me _one_ night with this guy and suddenly I'm knocked up?" She laughed disbelievingly. "That's impossible." Her friend wasn't paying much attention though, too busy searching the cupboards before her. She finally found what she was looking for, a plastic cup to pee in.

"Improbable? Yes. Impossible? Absolutely not. We need to run a pregnancy test before you leave. If you are pregnant, you should be far enough into the pregnancy to know right away." Alba crossed her arms in denial.

"I'm not taking it." Lorrie stared at her before sitting in her chair and wheeling up right in Alba's face.

"You can take this test and find out now, or you can let the question consume you for a whole other month, until you realize you're not only late, but you've missed two periods." Her tone softened. "You're going to drive yourself up the wall if you don't find out, you know that." Lorrie was right, of course. With a deep sigh, Alba inched off her seat and left the consultation room.

She marched down the hall like a prisoner headed to the galleys, all the while trying to convince herself that this wasn't actually happening.

 _It's probably just a nightmare, and I'll be waking up in a cold sweat in about two seconds._ But when that moment never came, Alba had to take a deep look at herself in the mirror and force herself to calm down. She took a deep breath, and then another, and convinced herself that no matter what the results of the test were, everything was going to turn out fine.

After dropping off her things with a nurse, Alba went back into her room to play the waiting game. She thought of the files she had been working on all morning, but no matter how hard she concentrated, it wasn't going to happen.

After what felt like an eternity, Lorrie finally entered the room and sat across from her, holding a paper in her hand. When she didn't say anything, Alba looked up at her in frustration.

"Well?"

"You're pregnant." Alba's heartbeat thundered in her ears as she tried to keep it together. Pregnant. Pregnant. Pregnant. The word bounced around in her head stubbornly. Alba couldn't remember how many times she'd wanted to hear those words. But not like this. In her head it was so, so different. She and Marcus owned a little brownstone with plenty of room for a nursery, and they would snuggle on the couch and stare at her belly in amazement.

Now here she was, finally getting what she wanted…

Alone.

She knew the life of a single parent. She'd been raised by one since she was six.

"…Alba?" She looked up at Lorrie, who stared at her with an expectant face.

"What?"

Lorrie sighed. "I said, which OB/GYN would you like to visit? My recommendation is Dr. Gomez in Brooklyn. All of my patients have absolutely loved her. We can call her today and set up an appointment with her."

"Yeah, I guess." Lorrie jotted something down.

"Alright, you'll get a call once we set up an appointment. Based on what you're telling me, I'm estimating your pregnancy at about 8 to 9 weeks. Since you haven't been taking any prenatal vitamins, you have to get on them ASAP. Today if you can." Lorrie handed her a piece of paper. "These are the ones I recommend. The pharmacy two blocks from your apartment should carry at least one of these." Once Lorrie got all the doctor stuff out of the way, she stood next to Alba and gave her a hug.

"I know this is scary, but just think of how long you've been waiting for this moment. You're not alone, Alba." Bolstered by her words, Alba nodded wearily.

"I'll swing by your apartment tonight with a big bag of chocolate, since wine is out of the picture for the next eight months."

Alba stumbled through the rest of the day in a blurry haze, nearly botching two meetings before rescheduling the last one and heading home early. Too tired to put up with the subway, she took a taxi to the pharmacy near her apartment.

She moved sluggishly through the brightly lit aisles, finally finding the prenatal vitamins. After picking one from the list Lorrie provided her with, she took a long, hard look at the pregnancy tests on the other side of the aisle and decided to pick three…just in case.

An hour later, she was sitting in back in her apartment with three pregnancy tests before her. She had taken them as soon as she stepped through the door, but was too chicken to actually look at the results. Again. Not that it mattered though, because Alba had a pretty good feeling what the results were going to be. She glanced at the first test.

 _Positive._

Expelling a breath she hadn't realized she was holding in, she turned the second over over in her hand.

 _Positive._

Finally, the last test, which was said to be the most accurate.

 _Positive | 6-8 Weeks_.

All three tests telling her something she already knew. There was no running from or denying it; she was going to be a mother.

Suddenly she began to wonder what that would look like.

Would she have a little girl or boy with her unruly black curls? She imagined a little boy with her dimples running at her happily, arms outstretched, and leaping into her embrace. Instead of feeling panicked or scared, she felt a warm, blooming feeling in her chest and a smile curving on her lips. She wanted this.

The shock of the news was starting to wear off, and she was finally left with the realization that this is what she had wanted for years. A baby. And although the circumstances were not ideal, she was finally getting what she wanted. She just prayed everything would work out this time.

She practically ran to her living room and cozied up on the couch with her laptop, making a mental list of all the things she'd have to do in the coming months. Her new apartment only had one bedroom, so she would have to move somewhere with enough room for the nursery. Of course, the baby probably wouldn't need it right away, but she couldn't imagine packing her whole entire house with an infant on her hip.

 _No. I'll be moving before the baby comes._

She needed to think about a crib and a rocking chair. A bouncer. Maybe classes? Alba remembered one of her associate's at work mentioning some childbirth class or something. What should she eat? She remembered reading somewhere that sushi was a no. Baby clothes?

After another thirty seconds of pondering, Alba became overwhelmed. It was too much, too soon. She needed organization. She needed a structured guide to tell her what to do and when to do it.

She needed books.

Alba was halfway through her massive order of pregnancy and childcare books when Lorrie knocked on the door with a bag or Reece's Peanut Butter Cups. Her favorite. She took a look at her friend's face and knew something had changed.

"You look happy." Lorrie noted. "I was half-expecting you to open the door in your ugly pajamas, sobbing. What changed?" Alba grinned and snuggled up in her white sectional again while her friend sat beside her.

"I pictured what it would be like. The future, being a mom, having a little person love you unconditionally. It just made me so _happy_. And then I remembered how long I'd been praying for this to happen. I mean, the situation is obviously not ideal. But I'm a smart, strong woman. I can look after my baby all by myself." Lorrie paused.

"I'm happy you've had a change of heart. But just remember, Al, you're not all by yourself. You have me and Rick."

Alba snorted. "I doubt your husband is going to want to chase after my kid."

"He will if it's _your_ kid. You're like a sister to him, you know he's going to be thrilled. And if that weren't enough, your sister is going to be there for you, too. And your mom. Have you told them yet?" Alba's body tensed with anxiety.

"No I…I just don't want to break the news too soon. Just in case…you know." The statement remained unsaid but echoed loudly in the room. In case it didn't work out. Lorrie peered at Alba's Amazon cart on the computer, looking to change the suddenly somber conversation.

"Jesus, Alba, just how many books are you about to buy? There's no way you're gonna need so many."

"You don't know that! I just want to have all my bases covered."

"Trust me, you just need the basics." Together, they weeded the number of books from about fifteen to three: a pregnancy nutrition book, a baby care book, and an organizational book that was supposed to help Alba plan all the things she had to do before the baby came.

She pressed the 'Order' button with a gleeful expression on her face, counting down the days until she could hold something tangible in her hands. The two women ate chocolate in silence and watched MTV reruns. Alba ate three Reece's cups before Lorrie interrupted her.

"So…are you going to try to find him?"

"You mean Steve?" Alba sighed. "I don't know. I mean, he signed on for one night with me, not a lifelong commitment."

"He should still know."

"And what am I supposed to say? Hey Steve, nice to see you again. Remember me? We had great sex together, except it was so great you got me pregnant. So…congrats." Lorrie sputtered a laugh.

"You don't have to break it to him like that. Just think about it. It would suck if he found out twenty years down the road he had a kid he never even knew of."

She was right, of course. It occurred to Alba that she would not only be keeping Steve in the dark, but potentially denying her child of getting to know his or her dad.

She had to find Steve.

* * *

Alright folks, that's Chapter 2! I hope you guys are enjoying Alba as a character so far. She's very dedicated to her job, and that will definitely play a role in the upcoming chapters. Please leave me a review if you enjoyed it! Currently working on Chapter 3 (don't worry, Steve is in it =p)


	3. Chapter 3

Manhattan, NYC | 0920 Hours

 _1 Week Later_

Alba was on her second cup of decaf coffee of the day, pacing in her office while her client babbled on the phone.

"No, Johanna, you're safe. Listen to me, I promised you he was going to go behind bars. I'm going to keep that promise. But you're going to have to trust me. Now I'm going to ask you again; has he tried to contact you since the restraining order went into effect?"

She sighed irritatedly, trying not to let the caffeine withdrawal get in the way of her job. Johanna was only nineteen. Barely a woman. If she couldn't send the scum that assaulted her into prison…she would never be able to sleep at night.

The young woman on the phone took a shaky breath in response to her question. "N-no. But he's not going to leave me alone…he'll kill me before going to prison again." Alba froze.

"Johanna. You need to be honest with me. Did he tell you that?" There was only the silence of shaky breathing on the other side. Johanna was scared beyond her wits. Alba had worked with clients like this before, she could still get her on board.

"Johanna, honey? You can tell me." She said in her most soothing voice. "I'm here for you, Jo. I've been on your side since the night I found you in that alley, but you have to tell me the truth. Did he threaten to kill you?"

"Yes." Johanna's cracked voice was small, but Alba got all she needed before the girl burst into tears on the other side of the line. It was all she could do to shake her head and silently wish a slow, painful death on the bastard who did this. She had to put him in prison. He was going to get what he deserved, or her name wasn't Alba Herrera.

"Listen, Jo. Gonzalez is being held accountable for at least a dozen counts of murder, but we need your testimony to make that happen. You're the only woman that managed to survive him." Alba took a deep breath. "I have a contact at the U.S. Marshals office. I'm sure once bring your case to his attention they will consider you for witness protection." The girl on the phone sniffled for a few seconds before scratching out a reply.

"You mean that I'll get taken somewhere else? What about my mom and my sister?" That was tricky. Marshals never brought the families. Witnesses only. Alba considered coming straight out with the truth, but Johanna was already being skittish. She had to stall.

"I'll see what I can do. But in the meantime, you just stay calm and make sure you're ready for the trial. Less than two weeks, now." Alba remarked, glancing at the calendar sitting on her desk. She sat before her computer and soothed Johanna for a couple more minutes before promising to call her tomorrow after a visit to the U.S. Marshals office.

After being on the line for nearly an hour handling Johanna's meltdown, Alba leaned back in her seat and glared at the phone. As if taunting her, it started ringing again the second she put it down.

"Oh, come on! You've got to be kidding me," She snatched the phone off its cradle and put on her most professional voice.

"This is Alba Herrera, how may I help you?"

"About time you picked up the phone." Alba growled under her breath as she recognized Marcus' smarmy voice.

"I was busy with a client, Marcus. Might I remind you that I have a lovely assistant that would be happy to take any messages?" Marcus snorted.

"Alba, if I wanted to talk to Agnes I would have called her desk, right?" He talked to her the way he would explain things to a very dumb child, and Alba felt the sudden need to reach through the phone and strangle him.

"What do you want, Marcus?" She bit out, rubbing at her temples and cursing the lack of caffeine in her system. Caffeine withdrawal was no joke.

"I'm calling because I need the depositions that you collected from the S.H.I.E.L.D. overtake. The DOJ wants them verified and signed. They're putting a lid on the case." She cursed the day they agreed to work on the case together. She remembered being excited about possibly meeting the Avengers, but 100% of the people she took statements from were office employees who worked in cubicles all day. Now she was forced to work with her idiot ex.

"If you need the depositions, I'll send them with a courier. He'll be there in an hour—"

"A courier? Come on, Alba. We were working on this together, the best thing would be for you to deliver that package and wrap up this case with me…personally." Was he…was he trying to sound suggestive? Alba clapped a hand over her mouth to keep herself from gagging and hung up the phone, grumbling as she shoved papers and files into her briefcase.

"…Who the hell does he think he is. Shameless asshole. There's a special circle in hell for petty people like him."

Alba arrived at his firm twenty five minutes later, huffing from a sweaty cab ride and trying to smooth her rambunctious curls into a semblance of order. She usually made time to go get a blowout at her favorite salon, but the pregnancy had been turning her life upside down. In the evenings, after long days at work, she could barely keep her eyes open. Yesterday Alba barely finished her dinner before passing out on the couch for a three hour nap. Then she woke up, showered, and continued to sleep the entire night.

No matter how much sleep she got, she was always tired. All her hours at home were spent sleeping, and she felt like she was barely keeping it together. Between her lack of time and the unexpected demands of her job, she was trying hard not to let everything overwhelm her.

… _And the baby isn't even here yet._

Alba signed in at the security desk and marched into the elevators, feeling weirdly uncomfortable by how familiar it felt. She was whisked away to the thirty-first floor, where all the conference rooms were, and walked down the long hallway until she caught a whisper of someone's voice.

"Are we nearly done here?"

That voice. It was so familiar, husky and warm like honey. So familiar…

"Just about. We're just waiting on Miss Herrera to grace us with her presence. Then you two can verify the statements and sign." _…And there's Marcus_. Of course Marcus would say that. _If he wanted the papers on time so damn much, he should have gotten his ass down to her firm and picked them up in time._ Suddenly Alba felt a roaring in her head. She prided herself on being a damn good lawyer, and she wasn't going to let anyone blame their incompetence on her. Less of all Marcus.

She swung the door open and strutted into the room, walking down the long conference table until finally reaching her target. "Hello gentlemen," She didn't spare a glance at the two men sitting across from her ex, focusing all her anger on his smug face. "Next time you want depositions, give me more than a twenty-five minute warning, will you? In case you forgot, I am also a lawyer with a full case load and unlike you, _I_ don't keep my clients waiting." Marcus' pompous face fell, and his eyes flitted nervously to the two men sitting across from him.

Finally satisfied with her set-down, she sat next to him and began organizing all of the paperwork she had in her briefcase. She was almost done with the neat stacks when she noted the deafening silence in the room. Alba froze and looked up, her jaw swinging open in a small 'o'.

It was Steve. She blinked hard and stared again, noticing a similar expression on his face. She suddenly realized she wasn't imagining things. After nearly a week of a fruitless search for her mysterious baby daddy, he had quite suddenly landed on her lap. She glanced down at the paperwork before her once more, this time with intent to get his name. Why hadn't she read the documents on the taxi ride there?

Cause she'd been too busy dozing off.

She kept skimming through the papers until she found what she was looking forward.

His name was Steven Grant Rogers. Otherwise known as Captain America. _Jesus Christ_.

 _So that's why he looked so familiar. God, how stupid am I? How did I not realize who he really was?!_

In Alba's defense, it should be noted that all the pictures of Captain America she had ever seen were of him masked. With a uniform and a shield. She had never Cap like this; dressed casually with a baseball hat over his brow and a cozy brown leather jacket. She felt overwhelmed, and suddenly very, very tired. She couldn't do this. Not right now. So she shoved the papers at Marcus and gave him her most menacing look.

"Here are the depositions. You finish up, I have a very important meeting I'm late for." It was the truth. The meeting at the U.S. Marshall's office was in less than half an hour, and she couldn't afford to be late. Johanna needed her help.

Alba tore down the hall and was practically running to the elevator when a hand closed around her wrist. She recognized the burning warmth, the way this hand made hers feel tiny. It didn't take a genius to realize Steve had caught up to her.

"I really am late." She whispered, not wanting to draw Marcus' attention out into the hallway. Instead of responding, Steve gently tugged on her hand and led her into one of the smaller conference rooms, closing the door behind them. She took advantage of the large leather chairs the room had been furnished with and plopped right down, taking deep breaths to contain the sudden nausea. Something told her this wasn't morning sickness.

Alba glared down at the oak table before her, and when Steve realized she wasn't going to say anything, he sat down beside her and spoke up.

"I want to apologize."

"If you're going to say sorry for what happened that night, don't. Nothing you can say will change anything." Steve looked at her for a long moment before breaking into a grin.

"Actually I wasn't planning on apologizing for _that_. I'm apologizing for the disappearing act I pulled the next morning. Something happened at the tower, and they needed me right away." Belatedly, she realized he was talking about _the_ Stark Tower, the building jutting into the heart of Manhattan.

"Why didn't you just knock on the door and tell me? I was in the bathroom the whole time." He would have probably scared the shit out of her, but still. Steve's head snapped towards her, eyes narrowed.

"I left you a message, Alba."

"What kind of message? Psychic? Telepathic? I never got anything, Steve." He sighed and joined her at the table. Alba tried not to stare at the way his jacket clung to his shoulders and arms.

"I wrote my number on the paper that was sitting on the kitchen counter," He explained. "I wanted to take you out to dinner, but you never called so I thought you weren't interested." Alba let out a long sigh, suddenly felt terrible for assuming the worst of him. He wasn't like Marcus. He was a good guy.

"The papers on the counter were junk mail…I threw them out. I am so sorry." Steve gave her a small smile, and she knew all was forgiven. Alba wondered how he would react when he found out he was going to be a dad. She had to get a chance to speak with him in private.

"I have to talk to you. Can you come to my apartment, tonight? I'll make dinner."

He hesitated. "I would love to, but I agreed to be somewhere. Could we do it in the next few days?" Alba tried not to look desperate, but the faster she got this news off her chest the easier she would sleep at night.

"Steve, this is really important." His features instantly hardened as he leaned forward. His face was all Steve, but the way his muscles tensed for fighting were all Cap.

"Is something wrong? Are you in danger?"

His unwavering concern set butterflies soaring in her stomach. _You're not fifteen anymore, Alba. Get. It. Together._ "No. But it is important. Please." He stared into her eyes, and Alba suddenly felt like she was sitting at the bar again, about to fall off a precipice. Seeing the way Steve glanced at her lips, it was obvious he felt the same way. The spell was broken when the elevator dinged down the hall, and Steve leaned back into his seat, clearing his throat.

"Let me see what I can do," He said. "Give me a minute, will you?" He took out his phone and excused himself, walking to the end of the conference room and gazing out of the window. Whoever was on the other end picked up and he spoke quietly, but his warm voice still carried across the silent room.

"Hey. Something came up. I can't do today." Oh god, had she interrupted on his date plan or something? She wanted to beat herself up. But she was doing the right thing. For both Steve and the baby. He was a good man, that much Alba could see. And he had every right to know.

"…I know that, Nat. No, it's not that. I can't say. It's…personal." He said, eyes flitting back to me at the table. "Look, I get it. Just rope Tony in, tell him you can't do it without him and all that, he'll come around." _Oh my god. Tony. Tony Stark?_ Alba's mouth dropped when she realized he was dropping an Avenger mission for her, and she felt like she wasn't worthy of breathing his air. Steve finally finished up his call and smiled.

"I'll be there. What time did you want to meet?"

She let out a relieved breath. "Is seven okay? You remember where my place is, right?" Just in case he forgot, she took out a business card and wrote down her home address and number on it. Her phone beeped with an incoming message from the rankled U.S. Marshall she was supposed to be meeting, and she jumped to her feet and grabbed her things. Alba gave Steve a hasty goodbye and promised to see him later before running to catch the elevator.

 _You can do this. You can do this. You can do this._

Hours later, Alba repeated the words in her head like a mantra, pacing. From her kitchen, to the living room, and then back into the bathroom, to make sure she looked fine. She wasn't sure if this was a date, but she picked a pretty summer dress that was covered in flowers and comfortable pointy heels. She also rushed to the salon as soon as she ended her appointment at the U.S. Marshals office and had gotten it straightened into submission. Her hair was now sleek and voluminous, cascading in thick raven waves around her shoulders.

Dinner was done and steaming on the table. Alba ended up choosing to make pasta because it was easy and quick, but had to switch from spaghetti to chicken alfredo because the sudden scent of tomato sauce made her gag. It was the third time it had happened so far, and she was still as confused as the first time it happened. Stupid pregnancy hormones.

After laying the tossed salad and bread beside the pasta, she scurried back into the bathroom to check her makeup. She was going for a natural look, but was afraid she looked too made up. She didn't want Steve to get the wrong idea. This was just an important talk, that's all.

Alba was brushing her hair for the third time when a quick knock made her stop short. With a cleansing breath, she hurried over the to door and opened it slowly. Steve greeted her with a nod, and then continued to take her in from head to toe, his eyes lingering on her legs.

 _Not a date. Not a date. Not a date._

But clearly Steve didn't know that, because he grinned and presented her with the most beautiful bouquet of flowers Alba had ever seen. Her mouth dropped as she stared at the beautiful assortment of pink, coral, and white peonies.

"These are beautiful, Steve. Thank you." She resisted the urge to lean up on her toes and give him a kiss. _Not a date._

"Please, come in." She took his leather jacket and hung it up, anxious to keep busy. The last thing she wanted to do was start babbling like a lunatic. She rushed over to the kitchen and put the bouquet in some water. "I hope your hungry. Do you like pasta?" When Steve wasn't looking, she breathed in the flowers, smiling to herself. It'd been years since she had received any.

"Yeah, I love it. It smells great." Alba joined him at the table and started dishing out their food, taking care to avoid the subject of alcohol. Nothing like a woman pointedly avoiding wine to draw suspicion. She took a careful bite of pasta and watched in amusement as Steve wolfed down the food on his plate.

"This is delicious." He groaned, stuffing another forkful of chicken in his mouth. He was eating like he hadn't had a decent meal in weeks, and Alba couldn't resist teasing him.

"Can no one cook pasta in Stark Tower?" Steve answered easily.

"I'll be honest, I can't cook. The only decent cooks are Sam and Nat, but there's a lot of mouths to feed, and most of the times they can't be bothered so to make so many portions." She was starting to see what he meant. Even though the food on her plate had barely been touched, Steve was finishing his first serving and reaching over the table for seconds. Clearly some superhero super-metabolism was at play here.

"Pasta is easy. If you want, I can show you how to make it sometime." Steve gave her a playful look, his mouth pulling up in a crooked smirk, and Alba's heart thudded in her chest. _Not a date_.

"I'd love to. It's time I learn my way around a kitchen, so really you would be doing me a favor." Alba resisted the urge to declare it a date. Why was she making plans with him? For all she knew, Steve would run out the door the moment he found out she was pregnant. She briefly wondered what would happen if she just blurted it out. Right now. She practiced the words in her head, but every time she tried opening her mouth, her jaw locked up.

"Alba?" Her head snapped up to find Steve looking at her curiously. "Is everything okay?" Her brained screamed. _Tell him now!_

She took a deep breath. "Actually, no. You must be wondering why I insisted you stop by tonight. Believe or not, it wasn't just so you can try my chicken Alfredo." She joked, trying to hide the breathlessness in her voice.

"I won't lie. I've been wondering about that a lot." He replied slowly, the playful glint fading from his eyes. In this moment, Alba wished she was anywhere but here. She wished she was still back in the bar, feeling the warmth of Steve's gaze on her shoulders. She realized she liked him. A lot. And she was scared of loosing him, but lying would get her nowhere. Honesty was the only option.

"I invited you over because there's something really important I need to tell you." _So far so good_ , she coached herself. He straightened in his chair and leaned forward, the picture of patience.

"Steve…I had a doctor's appointment last week. They found something kind of…unusual. I'm pregnant."

Silence.

Alba stared at Steve, who hadn't moved an inch, and gulped nervously. "Steve, did you hear me? I said I'm pregnant."

"I heard you." He said shakily, and suddenly she noticed that his face was incredibly pale. Alba nervously awaited a reaction, and watched as he clenched his jaw. She couldn't stand the deafening silence, so she filled it isntead.

"Lorrie—the doctor, estimated me to be about seven weeks along. You're the only person that I've slept with since Marcus and I broke up. You have to believe me, Steve."

He furrowed his brows. "We used protection, Alba."

"I know. But apparently they're not effective 100% of the time." He stared at the table in silence, hands clasped before him. Alba suddenly felt like she was at the principal's office. It seemed like they were at an impasse. She wanted to prod Steve for a response, but it wouldn't be fair to him. God knows she'd acted the same way when she first found out.

Alba settled for clearing the table to give Steve some privacy to react. The last thing she wanted was him to feel like he a was bug under a microscope. Again. The dishwasher was halfway loaded when his phone started ringing.

He sighed and quickly muted it. It began ringing again almost instantly, and this time he growled as he rejected the call once more. By the third time, he was in a foul mood.

"What?" He barked. Alba shuddered when a distracted moment ended in a clatter of dishes before her. She ignored the man behind her and concentrated at the task in hand.

"Where's Tony?" He huffed when the warbled voice replied, but it was all Alba could do to keep from fangirling. _Tony Stark_! "Fine. I'll be in the airfield in twenty." Oh. Her stomach dropped with the realization he was leaving.

She turned around clumsily when his chair scraped back and he came to stand before her slowly. His bright eyes, which were normally mirthful, meet hers blankly.

"I have to go. There's an emergency." His voice was flat and lifeless even to her own ears, but she didn't point that out. The only thing she could do was nod and watch him march out the door, praying that he found it within himself to come back. One day.

* * *

It's up! It's up! Tell me what you guys think about Steve's reaction! 


	4. Chapter 4

Hey Guys! Chapter 4 is finally here! I normally update on Tuesday but this past week has been a rollercoaster! I've been battling a tooth infection all week, it's been driving me nuts. Anyway, I encourage you guys to follow me on Tumblr if you have one, because I will be posting announcements, visuals, and chapter previews over there :) My username is buckyxbae

 _Hope ya'll enjoy Chapter 4!_

* * *

 _West Village, NYC | Noon_

"So it's been five days." Lorrie said, leaning back in her chair and perusing the menu in her hands. Alba tried to copy her, although she wasn't quite as relaxed as her friend was.

"Five days and no contact from Steve, yes." She said tersely. Each day since the night she told him had been more agonizing than the last. Alba was now reduced to hovering by the phone like an idiot and repeatedly asking her doorman if he had seen a tall, blond man. He had not.

Despite the fact that she only knew him very little, she missed him. She missed his quiet presence and mirthful eyes following her around the room. She missed how safe she felt around him.

Her eyes began to water, and before she knew it, she was sniffling behind a napkin. _What the hell?_ Lorrie glanced at Alba over her menu and sighed like this was just another day in the life.

"Let me guess, pregnancy hormones?" She hiccuped behind her napkin and nodded.

The waiter chose to return to their table at that moment, taking in the young, crying woman and giving her friend and alarmed glance.

Lorrie threw an arm over her friend's shoulder and grinned at the poor waitress. "Don't worry, she's just pregnant." The waitress nodded, mystified, and promised to return shortly for their order.

Alba sniffled into her napkin one final time and composed herself. "I don't know what's wrong with me. Yesterday I cried because of this amazon prime commercial with a dog and a baby. I was sobbing, Lorrie." Her friend snickered.

"Oh the joys of pregnancy. When I was pregnant I used to cry after sex." Alba did a spit take. "It's true. Rick used to avoid having sex with me cause I used to sob my heart out afterwards. Hard to comfort your wife when your mouse is out of its cage." Alba giggled. This is why they were best friends. God knows what she would be doing without Lorrie coaxing back her sanity.

"You're probably just hangry, anyway."

"Probably." She agreed. The girls placed their orders and sipped their drinks, enjoying the sunny New York weather. Alba finally had a day off, and she was wrapping everything up for the big trial. She had two days left until she could put that bastard back in prison. Joanna, her client, was coming around at the idea of witness protection. The only sore point now was her family. They had to stay behind, but Joanna refused to leave them.

The dilemma was giving Alba a headache. Again.

She focused on the beautiful, quirky restaurant Lorrie had chosen instead. They were sitting in a well-lit terrace sipping margaritas (a virgin for her) and enjoying the city breeze.

The food showed up in no time, and they happily dug in. They finished their meal and split dessert after Alba begged for a slice of chocolate cake.

"I'm gonna gain some pregnancy weight right along with you," Lorrie announced, finishing the last of the cake. Alba peered down at her belly. It looked just as it had two months ago. She couldn't wait until she had a cute little bump. Last week she thought she noticed a little bulge in the stomach, but it turns out she was just bloated.

"How long until I'm showing, do you think?" Lorrie raised her eyebrows and inspected her friend's midsection.

"Who knows? Every person is different. I didn't show until four months."

"Four months? That's halfway through the pregnancy!" Alba whined.

"I'm not saying you're going to take that long," Her friend retorted. "Its just an example. Besides, the longer you can hide that pregnancy at the law firm the better. It's all shark infested waters over there." Too true. Speaking of which, she had to start thinking about her maternity leave. She made a mental note to visit the HR department and get some information.

"How is work, anyway?"

"It's fine," She answered. "I have been assigned another case with Marcus. Unfortunately."

Lorrie gave her a perplexed look. "Why didn't you just say no?"

"Because, Lor," Alba huffed, "It's not that easy. I can't just turn up and say 'hey, I don't want to work with this idiot because he cheated on me'. Not when you're a woman, anyway, cause then they blame it on stupid shit like me being on my period.

"And then you throw in my pregnancy, and it's the perfect ammunition for the junior associates banking for my job. Besides, my boss pulled me aside after Marcus and I closed the S.H.I.E.L.D. case and told me he's considering me to become a partner." Lorrie let out a low whistle.

"Wow. You're gonna be running the firm in no time, Al."

Alba grinned. "Yeah. I know."

The next morning, Alba found herself on the phone once more. This time, however, the conversation was much more rewarding. The young woman found herself grinning as she leaned back in her chair.

"When are you visiting us? Dylan won't stop asking for his Aunt." Alba smiled warmly as she remembered her nephew's sweet little face gazing up at her. She really had to visit her family. And then tell them everything. She was hoping to at least make it past the first trimester, and then she would break the news.

"How about in a month? I have to see some cases through, but after I'm done with those I can clear some time off with my boss." Her sister, Meredith, sighed on the other end of the line.

"A month? That feels like forever, Aly."

"You know, Mer, for being a big sister you sure are whiny. Your students don't hear you acting like this, right?" She teased her sister, who was the biggest baby out of the two. Funny how someone like Meredith ended up as a grade school principal. Her sister huffed.

"Shut up before I show up in your fancy New York apartment and trash it." She was about to reply with a comeback when the light on her phone started flashing. Her assistant was calling.

"Mer, I'm gonna have to call you back." She ended the call and accepted the incoming one.

"Yes, Agnes?"

"Ms. Herrera, there's someone here to see you." The older lady said stiffly. _That's weird._ She didn't remember having an appointment at this time. Just to make sure, Alba pulled up her calendar. It was empty.

"I don't have an appointment with anyone until three-thirty, Agnes."

"I know, Ms. Herrera. He's very…persistent." There was definitely distaste in her tone. Agnes, a sweet old lady that had worked as a secretary in the sixties, only talked about _one_ person like that.

Marcus.

Alba wanted to groan and stomp her feet. Why couldn't he just leave her alone? Ever since they started working on their last case, Marcus was like a dog with a bone. She wasn't sure if he was being petty or if he actually wanted her back, the the faster she got rid of him the faster she could head out to grab lunch.

So she asked Agnes to send him up, and started laying out her work around her desk to make herself look incredibly busy. The busier she looked, the faster he would get out of her hair. There was a short knock on her door.

"Come in," He entered and closed the door quietly behind him, coming to stand behind her desk patiently. Something was off. Marcus never knocked, and he never did anything patiently. Alba glanced up absently, working on some corrections, and did a double take.

This definitely wasn't Marcus, it was—

"Steve?" She blinked a couple of times, not quite believing her eyes. He wore the same baseball cap again, this time with black, square glasses perched on his nose. "What the hell happened to you?" He had a black eye, and another dark bruise blooming on his jaw. His nose looked red, like it had been punched, hard. Alba glanced down and found his hands bruised and bloody. She gulped. It looked like he'd killed someone with his bare hands, which, taking in his job probably wasn't entirely off the mark.

She gaped, and although her years as a lawyer had taught her how to always think on her feet, she had no idea what to say now. She didn't even know how to feel. Was she angry? Yes. Was she surprised? Absolutely. But more than anything, she was relieved. He didn't abandon her. He came back.

Steve shifted, looked down at the floor, and then gazed up at her. It seems like he was just as nervous as she.

"I owe you an explanation." Alba nodded slowly and motioned to the seat next to him. He sat in the and took a deep breath. "I didn't mean to disappear like that. There was a mission and…everything just went south. I am so sorry, but I had to be there." She nodded again mutely.

Steve looked at her anxiously and sighed. "Please say something."

"Why are you here, Steve?"

"Because you're…pregnant." He said the work cautiously, as if it would burn his tongue. "I'm here to take responsibility for what I did." Alba resisted the urge to laugh at his antiquated choice of words. He sounded like her grandfather.

"Steve, you don't have to say it like that."

He frowned. "Like what?"

"Like someone from the forties."

"I _am_ from the forties." The serious mood in the room lifted as the two began grinning at each other. Alba was starting to take in his familiar, playful look when it was replaced by a sullen one.

"When you told me the news, I was shocked. I mean, if I had a hundred guesses, I would have never even thought of you being pregnant. I didn't know what to do or what to say, and then Nat called, and I panicked. I knew I would regret walking out of that door in the first place, but I did it anyway. Leaving was a mistake. I'm so sorry that I left you the way I did, Alba." He sighed, looking down at himself angrily. "It was unforgivable."

Alba couldn't help feeling bad for him. "Steve, stop beating yourself up. Yes, you left me, but I'm not a delicate flower, I handled it. Besides, you're here now. That's all that matters."

His gaze snapped up to meet hers. "So am I forgiven? Let me make this up to you. Whatever you want." Alba's mind traveled to wicked placed. _Whatever she wanted?_ She looked at his earnest expression and forced herself to get her mind out of the gutter.

"Well…You can start by buying me lunch. I'm starving." Alba said, rising to her feet. "There's this hot dog cart a couple of blocks down next to central park that you have to try. Best dogs in the city."

Steve grinned and stood to join her. "Let's go. My treat."

The two left the firm and walked the short trek to central park. Steve walked vigilantly next to Alba, making sure she stayed on the inside of the sidewalk away from the cars. She tried not to grin at his little quirks, but it was the little things that gave him away. He really was a man out of time. He insisted on having Alba wait on a nearby bench under the shade as he paid for their lunch. His broad shoulder brushed against her as he sat on the bench. Alba tried to ignore the bolt of electricity she felt at this simple touch. They ate in silence, staring off into the greens of central park and observing the families playing around them. Looking at Steve sitting beside her proudly, Alba still couldn't understand how he wasn't recognized. It seemed his disguise, simple as it was, did the trick.

"So, what now?" He asked.

"Now we wait. I'm about ten weeks along, so you haven't missed much. I had my first OB/GYN appointment last week." Steve groaned under his breath, furious at himself.

"I missed the first appointment?" Alba grinned and placed his hand over his, flushing when he flipped his hand over to cradle hers. She cleared her throat.

"It was pretty boring. I have my first ultrasound in two weeks. If you're interested in coming let me know and I'll send you the details."

"Of course I want to go. I wouldn't miss it for the world." He glanced down at her stomach and Alba tried not to fidget self-consciously. It took her a second to realize he was trying to see if she had a bump. She put a hand on her soft stomach and grinned nervously.

"I'm not showing yet. My friend told me she didn't start showing until she was almost four months along." Steve met her eyes and grinned, relaxing into the bench.

"Have you had any morning sickness?"

"Not too much. Why?"

"Because we have to finish that dinner." He answered playfully.

Alba paused beside him. "…You still want to date? After everything that's happened?" He didn't hesitate to reply.

"I know that every time we spend time together something crazy happens. But I'm not going to give up. Especially now." Alba wanted to sigh. _Is this even real life? Cause I wake up back in my office I'm gonna be_ pissed _._

"Okay. We can start by finishing last week's dinner. Be there by seven, and leave the cell phone at home."

Steve's lips twitched as he gave her a small salute. "Yes, ma'am."

* * *

Alright, Question of the week:

How do you guys feel about Alba's reaction? Was she too easy on Steve? Did she forgive him too quickly?! Let me know :)

Also a million thanks to all of you who review, favorite, and alert the story. You guys make my day. Seriously. I laugh at random moments at work and I'm pretty sure my coworker thinks I lost my marbles because of ya'll so THANK YOU


	5. Chapter 5

ITS TUESDAY AND YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS! So this chapter is a little shorter than average but i am planning to make up for that in the next one!

FIY, there is a texting exchange in this chapter. **Alba is in Bold** and _Steve is in Italics._

* * *

 _Manhattan, New York | 1 Week Later_

"Jones, how is everything going with the DA?" The young African man a few seats down from Alba spoke up.

"They were being difficult at first, but I think they're coming around to the case." Her boss nodded, satisfied, moved on to the next person at the table.

It was the weekly associate's meeting, where the head of the firm went over all pertinent cases and made sure things were being done correctly. Since Alba was well established as an attorney at the firm, he hardly ever bothered her for updates. But she still insisted on attending the meeting, unlike some of her fellow Senior Associates. Just because she had climbed to a high position didn't mean she was above this.

"Herrera?" Alba's head snapped up to meet the questioning look her boss aimed in her direction. Her cheeks burned as she realized every person in the conference room was staring.

"What?"

"I said, how is the case with Sumner coming along? He giving you any trouble?" The boss looked at her carefully, trying to see if dredging up Marcus's name bothered her. It was obvious that he had already heard the news of the break-up and wanted to make sure she wasn't plotting to kill her ex in his sleep.

Alba met Durand's eye and conjured her most ball-busting tone. "Don't worry, he hasn't been an issue. Besides, I can handle him." The older man grinned encouragingly and moved on to the next unsuspecting junior associate.

She spent the rest of the meeting fidgeting in her seat, resisting the urge to duck out of the conference room and run to the bathroom. For some reason she had the constant, overwhelming urge to pee. It started two days ago, in the night. Now every time she got a good sleep going on, she woke up with the urge to run to the bathroom.

Today she hadn't been too clever, either. If she was smarter she would have picked the seat next to the exit, so that she could sneak off without being noticed. She finally bolted out of her chair when the meeting was declared finished and power walked to the ladies room.

Two floors down on her office floor, Alba found her assistant organizing the mail outside of her office. The older woman smiled kindly as she continued to sort the envelopes in front of her.

"Hi Agnes."

"Hello Ms. Herrera." Alba grinned to herself at the older woman's stubbornness. No matter how many times she requested being called by her first name, the woman never caved. The two ladies walked down the hall to Alba's office.

"Any changes in my schedule?"

"None yet. The DA's office called and asked you get in touch with them to set a date on the Gonzalez trial." Of course the case she was dying to sink her nails into had to get postponed. It didn't help Joanna's cold feet, and it was taking every ounce of Alba's wit and charm to keep the young girl from balking.

"Oh! Something came for you while you were in the meeting. I left it on your desk." The old woman said, grinning widely at her. Alba wondered what her assistant could possibly be referring to. She hadn't ordered any packages lately, and everything pregnancy related had been strictly mailed to her apartment.

Alba opened the door to her office and stopped short. There, sitting prettily on her desk, was the biggest flower arrangement she had ever seen. She had to physically remind herself to close her mouth as she walked over to inspect the arrangement. The flowers spilled out of the huge vase, nearly taking up half of her desk and bursting in different shades of pink.

Agnes laughed and exited her office with a short goodbye, leaving Alba to fangirl over the arrangement in peace. She plucked the small card and ripped it open.

 _These don't make up for running out last time, but I hope they're a start._

The card didn't need to be signed for her to know who it was from. She stepped back and looked at the arrangement once more, fawning over all the shades of pink when her cell phone dinged.

A face-splitting smile took residence on her face as she read the message from Steve.

 _Got it yet?_ She thought about Steve trying to figure out texting and couldn't help teasing.

 **OMG U CAN TEXT?** She only had to wait a second before an annoyed emoji floated in front of her. Alba laughed until her sides were sore and decided to text back just to make sure he wasn't mad.

 **Just kidding. Yes, I just saw them. I love them, THANK U.**

 _Glad you liked them. I was going to send chocolates but Tony reminded of morning sickness so I chose the safe option._

Alba looked at the flowers again for a second and narrowed her eyes. **BTW, all of these flowers are pink. Are you trying to tell me something?**

… _I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about._

She replied immediately. **Uh huh.**

 _I just told the flower shop to make something for the most beautiful, stunning, breath-taking woman in New York._

 **Okay, smooth talker. Turn in down a notch.**

 _Whatever you say, doll_.

She hated him. She hated him and his stupid nicknames that kept her distracted during work meetings and client meetings and plain work. How was she supposed to operate knowing that he had just called her a doll? She knew it was a 1940s thing, but still. She barely had time to pull herself together when another incoming text pinged on her phone.

 _Busy tonight?_

 **No. Why?**

 _Want to have that dinner? I'll leave the phone at home._

Alba couldn't help smiling like a dope as she replied **. See you at 7.**

Hours later, Alba stood in front of her mirror. She couldn't help the feeling of deja vu as she looked over herself. She wore another one of her dresses, still casual but a little sexier than before. Alba glanced down at the plunging neckline of her dress and nodded approvingly. Her breasts were getting bigger. According to one of her pregnancy books, this was normal. Alba had no idea where the boobs had suddenly come from, but she wasn't complaining.

She heard a muffled sound on the other side of the door and paused. It was only six, Steve wasn't due for another hour. But as she poked her head outside and sure enough, it was a knock.

She took a deep breath before pulling the door open, barely keeping it together when she laid her eyes on her date. Steve was smiling on the other side of the door, but the smile was wiped off when he saw her dress. His eyes lingered on her chest for just a second before he recovered and looked back up at her face. She missed his face. Without thinking twice, stepped in front of him and wrapped her arms around his neck for a hug. He reached around just as fast and held her close, breathing the soft, floral scent of her hair and lingering more than necessary before stepping back.

He stared at her hair, very different than what he was used to seeing. Alba's natural, rambunctious curls had taken over, bouncing all over the place every time she turned this way and that. She noticed her gaze and smoothed a hand nervously over her head as they walked into the apartment.

"It doesn't look bad, does it?"

Steve was quick to answer. "No. It's just different. It looks…sexy." She turned to the kitchen and tried to contain her squeal. Steve Rogers, beefcake supreme, thought she was sexy. She could die happy right now.

The two sat at the open kitchen, chatting quietly. Alba prepped the food while Steve observed from the breakfast bar and asked questions in between.

"So now you're going to chop that?"

"For the last time, yes. All of these veggies have to be chopped. You said you were going to help." He grinned teasingly.

"What, keeping you company here isn't considered helping?"

"Get your ass over here, Steve." Alba growled, brandishing a knife in front of him. He laughed quietly and came to stand next to her, tensing up when she placed the sharp kitchen knife in his hand.

"Just chop it." She instructed, letting him take over the cutting board and watching amusedly as he followed her directions. After a few seconds she took pity on him and decided to help.

"It's easier if your hold the knife correctly. Like this," She tried showing him how to grip the pepper and knife, but her arms couldn't quite reach around him. She struggled for a few seconds before huffing and ducking under Steve's arm, placing her back to his chest so that her hands were wrapped over his.

In Alba's head, this felt like a brilliant idea, but now all she could think about was Steve's solid arms around her and his warm breath fanning over her cheek and he watched her in amusement. Her hands started shaking uncontrollably, and she decided to ditch the idea before accidentally slitting one of their wrists open.

"You know what? On second thought, your technique isn't so bad. So what the veggies are going to be cut too big? It's all the same in the stomach, right?" She said nervously, tapping his big hands twice before moving out of the circle of his arms. But he wouldn't budge. His arms might've well been a steel prison.

"You should show me how to do this, at least." He rumbled quietly. "What, you scared?"

"I'm not scared." She said defensively, taking the knife out of his hands and positioning the pepper in his. Okay, she could do this.

"All you have to do is curl your fingers so you don't chop them off. Like this," She joined their hands and cut slowly and first, then speeding up when he started getting the hang of it. They were almost done when he cried out and snatched his hand away. The knife clattered to the floor as he turned away from her and clutched his hand to his chest.

"Shit! Oh my god, oh my god. Are you okay?" No answer. His shoulders were raising, shaking up and down sporadically. Alba thought he was crying quietly for a minute and almost panicked. Then she heard him. He was trying not to laugh.

Alba put on her most rankled expression and rolled her eyes at him. "You are so _annoying_ , Steve." He gave up trying to be quiet then, letting out a loud belly laugh that filled the apartment. She crossed her arms, having every intention of being mad at Steve for crying wolf, but he wrapped his arms around her and tried to sputter out an apology.

"I'm so…so…sorry!" His apology was followed by another round of laughter. Alba rolled her eyes but giggled a little despite herself, not being able to resist his boyish laugh.

"You shoulda seen your face…it was so funny." He lost it one more time, and this time she joined him. It took the both of them a second to get their laughter under control.

Alba stopped abruptly when she noticed how close Steve was standing. He had her pressed up against the kitchen island, arms caging her on either side. The room was suddenly too quiet and too small with his bright eyes burning into her face. Steve was only inches from her face, and she couldn't help it—she leaned in and kissed him.

It had been weeks since their first—and only—night together. And yet Alba felt like it had only been minutes. Their bodies fit together perfectly as she wrapped her arms around Steve's neck and he gripped her thighs and set her on the kitchen island effortlessly. Once the height difference had been slightly evened out Steve deepened the kiss and leaned Alba back on the counter. She was tearing off his neatly tucked shirt when a ringing interrupted them.

"I thought you left the phone at home." She sighed, shivering when Steve nibbled on the soft skin of her neck.

"I didn't. It's your phone." _What?_ Alba suddenly bolted upright. It was her work cellphone. No one ever called unless…

"Something's wrong." She picked up the phone and answered the call without looking.

"This is Alba."

"Ms. Herrera? It's Agnes. I got a call from the U.S. Marshals office. Joanna is missing."

* * *

DUN DUN DUNNNNN

Sooo question of the week: Was it time these two kissed already or going too fast? btw in my mind Steve totally known cooking basics but pretends not to so he can mess with Alba lol. Also, what's up with that pink flower arrangement? Coincidence or is Steve really trying to tell Alba something? As always I can't wait to hear back from your guys!


	6. Chapter 6

" _What?_ " Alba asked sharply, "What do you mean she's _missing_?" She felt suddenly breathless, leaning back into the kitchen counter for support. Steve appeared in front of her with a worried expression on his face.

"Joanna was in the safe-house one second and the next…she was gone."

"Well, did they check Gonzales? He has to be behind this."

Agnes responded readily. "Yes, that was the first place they looked. They searched his apartment, cordoned off his whole block and went through his phone records. He's coming up clean." Alba couldn't believe this. Where the hell was Joanna? Her heart dropped with the realization that somewhere out there she was in danger. She could be hurt this very moment. There was no question in Alba's mind, if they didn't find her soon, the girl was going to die.

"He can't be _clean_. Tell them to look for burner phones, search his known associates, they need to look in every place that man has stepped foot in since he's been out of prison!"

Agnes hummed in agreement. "I've reminded them of this, Ms. Herrera. But the Marshals are keeping us out of this. They don't want us stepping on their toes." Stepping on their toes? Someone was going to die and they were worried about being inconvenienced? Joanna was just a girl who must be scared out of her wits and these men are worried about protocols. Alba started seeing red.

She was going to step on their toes, all right. She was going to light a fire under their asses until the girl showed up. Alive. Alba hung up on Agnes and pulled up her guy at the Marshals office, huffing the whole time. Steve, understanding the gravity of the situation, faded into the background, quietly finishing up dinner according to the recipe Alba had left out on the counter.

The phone rung twice before a tired voice answered the phone.

"Hi, Alba."

" _You lost my girl, Franc_." Alba growled. "Don't act like this is a social call. Where are you on locating her?" The man hesitated.

"I'm not going to ask you again. _Where are you_?"

"We're…working on it."

"That's code for 'I don't have anything but I'm too ashamed to tell you that'." She wanted to throw her phone out of the window.

"C'mon, Aly, don't be that way." He protested.

"You lost my witness, Franc! She is a nineteen year old girl who has been abused and is scared out of her mind. I promised her she would be safe. You're going to find her."

"Absolutely. We have a thirty-six hour estimate—"

Alba cut him off with an angry laugh. "Oh, no, no. You have twelve hours to find her. _Alive_."

"But that's impossible."

"Is it, really? Franc, let me give you a heads up. If Joanna isn't back in that safe house by 7 A.M. _tomorrow_ , I will be standing in front of City Hall bright and early giving a statement about how the U.S. Marshals allowed the key witness in a murder trial get abducted under their own nose." Franc sighed on the other end of the line. He knew her well, having worked with her for years, and knew she wasn't bluffing. Alba never made threats she didn't fully intend on going through with.

"Alba, you're going up against the U.S. Marshals. This is not a bridge you want to burn."

She took a deep breath and shook her head, done with this conversation. "If the Marshals can't even keep their own witnesses safe, then its clearly not a bridge worth keeping. I'm going to call you in twelve hours, Franc, and it better be Joanna answered the goddamn phone." She ended the call and threw the phone down on the couch agitatedly, running a hand through her hand anxiously. A noise from the kitchen suddenly reminded of her Steve's presence, and she turned around slowly. She almost didn't want to look at Steve's face. Alba was passionate about her job, and the last time she wigged out Marcus practically fled her apartment, disturbed with the fact that she let her emotions get caught up in the job. But this was who she was. She worked hard and she poured her heart into her job, especially on a case like this. Alba couldn't stand injustice, especially when the victims were defenseless people.

She had to cancel the date. She couldn't think of romance when Jo was out somewhere, possibly in grave danger.

To her surprise, Steve was already standing by the door, coat in hands. She suddenly felt like the worst date ever.

"Steve, I'm sorry. I can see you're heading out, so let me—"

"Alba, I'm not leaving. Not alone." She she gave him a confused look, he plucked her jacket off the coat hanger and handed it to her. "We are going to the tower."

Alba held on to her jacket meekly. "Stark tower? For what?"

"Your witness is missing. If anyone can find her, it's us." The Avengers.

They traveled through the bright street of Manhattan in silence, letting the idle chatter of the taxi driver fill the ride. Alba couldn't fight the feeing of guilt as she glanced over at Steve. She invited him to dinner and instead he ended up cleaning up her mess, so to speak. Alba's faults hinged on the fact that she was prideful. She hated asking for help, and she hated depending on others. But someone else's life was at stake. So she had to buckle up and swallow her pride.

Stark Tower loomed over the pair as they exited the taxi. Alba lingered behind Steve and he strode into the large lobby, following his footsteps gingerly. The large crowd of workers had faded away earlier in that afternoon, and the place echoed with their footsteps. The guards at the doors glanced up and recognized Steve, then went back to their business as the pair entered the elevator.

Alba stood quietly and flinched when a smooth, female voice rung out.

"Good evening, Captain. I see you have an unrecognized guest with you. Do you require special accommodations?"

"No, F.R.I.D.A.Y., thank you. Is Stark in?" Alba watched in amazement as they voice replied instantly.

"Yes, Captain. He is currently in his workshop. Should I inform him that you are searching for him?"

Steve jabbed a button assuredly. "No, thanks. I know where to find him." The doors opened with a flourish and they strode into the glass covered room. It took a second for Alba to recognize it as a high-tech workshop. There were things that looked like small mechanical cranes, and sparks were shooting out from an obscure corner.

Steve walked up to the touchpad next to the door and started punching in what looked like at override code.

"Captain, Mr. Stark does not wish to be disturbed while he is in his workshop. Can I—" The robotic voice stopped as Steve opened the door, giving up the fight to stop him. He stepped into the room and glanced back at Alba, who was looking at him shyly.

"What's wrong?"

She glanced through the glass nervously. "I'm just not sure I should be here." She whispered. He gave her a reassuring smile and tugged on her hand.

"You're with me. You belong where I belong." The sparking in the room stopped, and a darkly dressed figure walked in front of them. It was Tony Stark, standing before them in ripped up jeans and a dirty t-shirt.

He stared at Steve accusingly. "You broke into the shop."

"You gave me the override code." He defended.

Tony Stark rolled his eyes. "In case of an emergency, Cap. _This_ is not an emergency." He glanced at Alba and did a double take, eyes narrowing when he saw her. "What is this?" Her face finally registered in his mind, and he rolled his eyes once more and threw his head back dramatically.

 _This_ is what Alba was afraid of.

"Are you here to sue me again?"

* * *

So just a quick note: FFN has been having some glitches where review numbers rise but the actual reviews don't show up. Some have been trickling in and I am starting to respond to them. If I haven't replied yet please be patient! I am doing the rounds lol.

Sooo question: Which avenger are you excited to see in the story?! As always let me know what you guys think!


	7. Chapter 7

Alba squared her shoulders and tried to hold strong against Tony Stark's withering stare.

"No. I'm not here for…legal reasons." Steve stared between the both of them with a frown etched between his brows.

"Wait, you two know each other?"

Tony gave him a surprised look as he uncorked a beer. "You didn't know? This woman put me in prison like, three times."

"Actually, it was _four_ times," Alba bristled. "And it wasn't prison. It was jail. You never stayed for more than twenty-four hours."

"Really? Because from where I was standing, prison and jail look the same. What are you even doing here, anyway?"

Alba took a deep breath and tried to have the decency to look sheepish. "I need your help."

"No."

"Please?" She understood his reticence, hell, it she was in his shoes she would say no too. But she couldn't give up. Steve stepped between the both of them and gave Stark a serious look.

"Stark. Do it as a favor for me." Tony gave his friend a pained look. It was clear he wanted nothing more than to walk away from the pair standing before him, but he surprised them by taking a deep breath and squaring his shoulders.

"Ugh. Fine. But I'm gonna need a drink. C'mon, let's go upstairs."

The living quarters gleamed when Alba stepped off the elevator. She followed the men in front of her tentatively, jaw dropping at the unhindered sights of the New York skyline. Huge, glittering buildings stood tall on the other side of the floor-to-ceiling windows. The large apartment was furnished with modern, clean furniture in pastel hues, giving off a soft, comfortable look.

Alba peeked further into the room and spotted Steve's friend, the man known as the Falcon, sitting before a droning TV mounted to the wall. He glanced up as they walked by him and did a double take.

"Cap, you're here. Nat and I need to talk to you. She's waiting downstairs." Whatever 'downstairs' was, Steve understood immediately. He gave Alba a reassuring nod.

"Talk to Stark. I'll be back in fifteen." He left promptly, disappearing into the elevator as quickly as he'd stepped out of it.

Tony walked to the opposite end of the spotless living room and poured himself two fingers of scotch, showing no hesitation as he procured a glass of wine for Alba. Oh, how she missed wine. Tony lifted the glass to his mouth and wagged a finger in her direction

"Start talking, and make it good."

"I need your help finding someone." Tony made an amused sound and motioned at Alba's briefcase. She pulled out the case file she kept at her house and placed it on the counter, explaining the situation as he thumbed through the folder.

"Her name is Joanna Gibbs. She's the star witness in the Gonzales trial. Joanna was under witness protection in the last few days leading up to the trial, but we just got a call saying she's missing. I think she's been kidnapped." Stark glanced up at her from the file sitting before him.

"So let me just get this straight, you think he's trying to take her out of the picture in time for the trial?" Alba nodded.

"Most of our evidence isn't substantial. What we do have hinges on the fact that she's present to connect the case to her. If she isn't there, everything falls apart."

"Huh." He gave the case file another look before shutting it. "Alright, Lawyer Lady, you've caught my interest. Let's go to my office, I'm going to need my computer." Alba once again waddled behind Tony like an obedient duckling twelve floors down, narrowing her eyes when she realized they were back where they started.

"We were just here."

"I know. I needed a drink." Alba resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "So. House rules," Her host announced. "Don't touch anything. I also want full immunity for everything you're about to see here."

Alba pressed her lips together and tried not to smile. "I'm not a federal officer, Tony. I can't arrest you for what I might see."

"Oh. Well, good, cause I can't guarantee everything I'm going to do will be considered legal." He sat behind three large holographic displays and pulled Joanna's picture out of the file.

"Okay, let's start with the basics. F.R.I.D.A.Y., I need you to run facial recognition on this girl."

"Initiating facial recognition software. Running potential matches now." A stream of photos appeared on one of the holographic display, flipping through pictures so fast the only thing Alba saw was a blur. She pulled up a chair and sat beside Tony, sighing impatiently as his computer worked.

"It's going to take a minute. Any ideas while we wait?" She straightened up in her chair.

"Actually, I do. Can you hack phone records?"

Her host gave her a slow, disbelieving smile. "Are you suggesting criminal activity? I think I'm liking you better already, Lawyer Lady. What did you have in mind?"

Alba pulled out a list from her folder and placed it in front of him. "If Gonzales did this, he couldn't have done it by himself. He's being watched like a hawk, so he would have needed some sort of burner phone to contact backup."

"…And you want to find that burner phone?"

Alba nodded. "On that paper is a list of all of his known associates. If we hack into their phone records, I'm positive we're going to find one number they all have in common." He gave her an impressed look.

"Oh, you're good. You could be a detective, you know." Alba shrugged, flattered.

"My dad was. A detective, I mean." Tony got to work tracking the phone numbers. Alba watched silently as the screens before him began processing data at light speeds.

Once he was satisfied with his tech, Tony leaned back and gave Alba a curious look. "So. You and Cap." She tensed up and tried not to look nervous. "He's never brought a lady home, you know."

"Oh, it's not…like that."

"Really?" He said innocently, "What's it like?"

" _That's enough_." Alba nearly jumped out of her skin and whipped her head around to glance at the door, relaxing when Steve grinned back at her.

Tony pursed his lips. "You couldn't show up later? All I needed was two minutes. Two. Minutes."

"So you could interrogate her?"

"Well I wouldn't have to interrogate your lady friend if you just told me who she is. You can't just bring a woman home and not tell us anything." Alba gave Steve an uncomfortable glance. She did not want to get caught up in their bickering.

"We're just friends, okay?" Alba interrupted, determined to put an end to this conversation before Tony could even get a whiff of the truth. "Steve knows how much this case means to me and offered to help." He looked like he wanted to contradict what she was saying, but caved at the last second and nodded right along with Alba's story.

Tony gave them a suspicious look and opened his mouth to argue, but a ping from the computer put their staring contest to an end.

"It looks like the verdict is in," He said tapping the screens before him and making a series of holograms appear before them. "But first, I just want to say I don't believe either of you for a seco—"

"Just get on with it." Steve huffed.

" _Fine_. Alba's hunch was right. All six of them made several calls to a burner number in the past three weeks. And the number is originating from…Queens. Facial recognition also came back. Joanna was in a car running a red light. Also in Queens." Stark leaned back and gave the pair before him a smug look.

"You really are a genius." Alba praised, jotting down the address on the hologram and pulling out her phone.

"Hello, Franc? I have a location on Joanna."

* * *

Hey guys! I hope y'all liked this chapter!

Let me know how I did introducing (Tony) the Avengers! Also let me know what you guys think of the new update schedule! Would you guys rather have 2 smaller updates or one larger one each week?


	8. Chapter 8

_Putnam, New York | 0700 Hours | One Week Later_

Alba stared out the window at the moving scenery outside and took a settling breath.

"Are you nervous? She glanced over at Steve and gave him her most encouraging smile.

"A little." The day for their first ultrasound had finally arrived, and Alba was torn between jittering in excitement or running away. Her obstetrician had referred them to an imaging center upstate, and Steve had happily agreed to show up at her place earlier that morning to make the drive.

She looked glanced around the big pick up and cozied up to the seat. Alba smiled, remembering the proud way Steve showed off the menacing black truck. Boys and their toys.

He glanced at the time, indicated on the dashboard, and nodded determinedly. "We're definitely going to make it on time. Maybe we'll even make it early enough to drop off our things at the house." The house. Steve's house, which she just found out existed three days ago, was a twenty minute drive from the imaging center, which was very convenient for the weekend they had planned.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me you have a house upstate."

He grinned. "I don't go often. Between the tower and everything that's happened, sometimes I forget I even have the place."

"Do they know about today?" 'They' of course being the Avengers. After their whirlwind introduction, Alba had scarcely seen them, but that didn't stop Steve from regaling her with their crazy antics when he frequented her apartment.

"No. I keep trying, but every time I open my mouth all I can hear is Tony screaming his head off. I'm not embarrassed," He clarified. "I just, I know the taunting is gonna go to another level."

"Is it really that bad?" Steve laughed dryly.

"I've heard so many old man jokes over the past few years I can write a book. And that's just from Tony." Alba threw her head back and laughed. Steve glanced at her, smiling at her upturned face, and then stared seriously.

"Have you told _your_ family yet?" Alba sobered and shook her head.

"Not yet. I don't want to get their hopes up…in case something goes wrong. The book I'm reading says once I'm past the first trimester the chance of losing the baby goes down exponentially. So after this weekend, if everything looks good, I'll make the trip home and tell them." She bit her lip at the simple idea of coming clean to her mom. There was just something about going back home that made her feel like an out-of-control teenager again.

"How do you think they'll react?" Steve asked carefully, for some reason nervous to listen to her answer. In his mind, he wasn't asking how her family would feel, he wanted to know how _she_ felt. He gulped as he realized that he was having the time of his life since he'd left the ice, and a part of him wanted her to feel the same. What if she suddenly woke up one morning and decided pregnancy wasn't for her?

Steve snapped out of his ramblings as she replied quietly. "I don't know. Probably as well as you'd expect them to, considering my family is a very traditional. I mean, catholic hispanic mom. Doesn't get worse than that. But my sister will probably be thrilled. She's wanted me to start a family for years. I'm not too worried about them. I'm sure they'll come around by the time the baby is born."

The rest of the drive upstate was spent in a quiet whirr. Before Alba even realized what was going on, they were walking through the doors of the imaging center and riding the elevator up to the ultrasound department. She took one deep breath after the other, trying to bolster her confidence. _Everything is okay, this is not last time_.

Steve sensed her fear and reached out to give her hand a squeeze. She tried to squeeze back, to assure him that everything was okay, but it wasn't. The gunmetal walls of the elevator were closing in, and all Alba could do was dart out into the hallway as soon as they opened and scurry into an empty consultation room to panic in peace.

She whirled around and the door closed with a quiet 'click' to find Steve staring at her, worried. Alba tried disguising her tears, but it was too late. He was onto her. His arms were wrapped around her just in time for the tears to well over into the soft fabric of his sweater.

"I'm sorry," She whispered into his neck. "I didn't mean to make a scene. You must think I've lost it."

He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. "No. No."

Alba took a deep breath as she tried to explain herself. "This isn't the first time I've been pregnant. Two years ago, Marcus and I were expecting. There was this car accident, and they decided to operate and try to save the baby. It didn't work." She hiccuped quietly once more. "They said because of my injuries, the chances of getting pregnant were going to be slim. And now here I am, doing it all over again, and I am so scared. I'm so scared I'm going to walk in there and it's going to be over. Just like that." Steve held her close and tried to comfort her as much as he could, pressing kisses into her wild hair. He suspected something like this had happened before. The fear, the shakiness, the way she talked about pregnancy. He felt terrible, and he would be lying if he said he wasn't a little nervous, too.

After a couple of minutes Alba had finally settled down in his arms with a soft sniffle and kissed his jaw. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For not freaking out. Every time I throw something at you, expecting you to scream and run for the hills, you do the opposite."

Steve grinned and pushed up his unnecessary, disguise glasses. "Trust me when I tell you I have seen crazier things." Alba tried to smile back, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"What if I lose the baby?"

"Everything is gonna be fine. But even if it isn't, and something happens, I want you to know I'll still care about you. I'll still be here. So if you lose the baby," _God forbid_ , He murmured in his mind, "We'll just have to make another one." That did the trick as Alba bubbled over in a small giggle.

"Alright, hotshot. We should go before we're late."

The couple made their way out of the empty consultation room and entered the large, spacious waiting room down the hallway. The receptionist smiled up in greeting, freezing up when she spotted Steve behind Alba. He met her eye blankly, praying she wouldn't notice his identity and reveal to the whole waiting room. He fidgeted beside Alba as she signed in, itching to get away from the woman's lingering gaze.

When he finally sat beside Alba at the other end of the waiting room, he let out a deep breath.

"What's wrong?"

Steve grinned nervously. "The receptionist. I think she might have recognized me."

Alba snorted as she flipped through a pregnancy magazine that'd been left out in the waiting room. "She didn't recognize you. She was checking you out." He froze and took a second look at the woman sitting behind the desk. She glanced away as soon as she met his gaze.

Alba shook her head and leaned in to whisper. "I'm pretty sure the lady sitting across from you is checking you out right now, too." Steve was about to open his mouth and tease her for sounding jealous, but Alba's OB/GYN greeted them in their seats and escorted them back to an imaging room, quickly going over Alba's stats before prepping her. Steve sat beside her in the dimmed room and took a deep breath. He was not ready for this.

"Okay Alba, this is going to feel a little cold." She tensed at the sudden coolness on her lower abdomen and stared at the ceiling, trying to burry the memories of her last pregnancy. This was different.

The probe pressed down, and all eyes in the room were glued to the tiny monitor. It only took a second before the feed cleared to show a little peanut shaped baby. Well, it didn't look like a human baby yet. More like an alien one, thought Alba, grinning at the small fluttering body.

Dr. Gomez scanned quietly, taking measurements here and there and turning the probe this was and that.

"Is everything okay?" Gomez stared down at Alba and smiled.

"Yes. Great, actually. The baby is measuring right at twelve weeks. All of the screenings came back, by the way. There were no issues." Alba couldn't help smiling hugely at Steve, who sat next to her looking absolutely stunned. "Would you two like the hear the heartbeat?" Alba bobbled her head so hard her neck almost seized up, and Steve couldn't mutter _yes_ fast enough.

Dr. Gomez chuckled quietly to herself. New parents were to endearing. She fiddled with the dials on the machine and a loud, crisp throbbing rang out in the room.

Peanut's heartbeat. Alba didn't bother stopping the tears welling up in her eyes. Her little peanut was fine. She glanced back and met Steve's gaze once again, taking in his slow smile and misty eyes.

This was going to be the beginning of something great.

* * *

Peanut's first appearance! So what did you guys think? I'm worried this chapter is a little rushed but I'm babysitting my niece and nephew this weekend and haven't had any time to write at ALL, which is also why I'm uploading so late.

Alba's story is also out! I tried hinting at the fact she'd had a miscarriage, any of you catch onto it? Miscarriage is so heartbreaking, some of my family members have had this happen to them, so I kinda wanted to honor that experience a bit in this chapter.


	9. Chapter 9

Greene, NY | 1200 Hours

Alba looked at the small picture her doctor had handed her and sighed happily. "I can't believe today actually happened." She grinned at the blurry shape of her little peanut once more and carefully slid the photo into her purse.

She finally took a moment to observe the house she was standing in. Steve's house had surprised her. Alba wasn't sure what she was expecting, but this beautiful, modern craftsman home was not it. The house had clearly been remodeled at some point, because the new layout was a modern, open concept. Even the appliances in the kitchen were new and shiny. But that kitchen! Alba ran her hand over the large, marble counters once more with a dreamy sigh. Someday she would have counters this beautiful and spacious.

Alba heard Steve trudging inside from the garage with their bags. A moment later he walked through the door, not breaking a sweat as he carried their two overnight bags upstairs. He called her upstairs and showed her the bedroom she'd be sleeping in, and Alba could only stare longingly at the big, sturdy bed. The sturdy, cool wooden furniture in the room was softened by the neutral grey on the walls and starched white bedding.

Steve caught Alba's tired face and frowned, reaching over to smooth her travel-mussed hair. "You must be exhausted."

She tried to deny it, but her body betrayed her by forcing a small yawn out. "It's just been a very eventful day."

Steve placed her stuff down next to the bed and gave her an encouraging grin. "Why don't you try to get some rest? I have to go stock up on things for the house anyway. It should take me a couple of hours. After I come back we can have a bite to eat and you can get the official tour."

Alba was reluctant to leave him, but that bed was practically calling her name. She gave Steve a hesitant nod and began making herself at home as he left the room.

The world went dark as soon as she laid her head on the cool pillow, and she woke what felt like hours later. The bright light filtering through the windows was waning now, dimmed to a soft glow.

It took Alba a minute to remember where she was, and what had occurred earlier that day. With a small smile, she plucked the ultrasound picture off the bedside dresser (where she placed it before falling asleep), and stared at it again. She couldn't believe it. It was really happening. She stared down at her belly and tried looking for any curving or softness, but gave up a moment later with a huff. It looked the same as it always did. Pudgy.

Her nose suddenly picked up on a rich, aromatic scent. Someone was cooking. Steve must be cooking. Her stomach began growling violently at around the same time she realized she had skipped lunch. It appeared her little peanut was starving.

Alba followed the delicious smell all the way down to the kitchen, where she found her host sitting on the breakfast bar, looking intensely at something before him.

He didn't stir until she sat on the chair beside him and looked at him expectantly, stopping in her tracks when she realized he'd been staring at his copy of the ultrasound. It seemed like Steve couldn't quite believe what had happened, either.

He realized she'd caught him staring at the picture and grinned at her, glancing at the photo once more before placing it in his pocket. For the first time in weeks, Alba worried about how he was coping with the pregnancy. What if he changed his mind?

"So. Today was crazy, huh? How are you feeling?" Steve hesitated as he thought about an answer to her question.

"I'm nervous." He admitted. Alba sat up straighter, somehow knowing he was speaking seriously. "I know how to be a soldier. I know how to fight. But I don't know how to be a father. What if I can't be a good dad?"

She understood his concern. She was worrying about the same thing earlier that morning. But if there was one thing she knew, it was that Steve was going to be a great dad.

"Maybe you don't know how to look after a baby. But you're a good man, and that's what matters most. The most important thing the baby will need is love. Can you do that?"

He met her gaze steadily, blue eyes blazing. "I can. I will."

Alba looked at the far side of the kitchen, where the normally shut french doors were swung wide open.

"What's going on?"

Steve gave her a lopsided grin. "C'mon, I have something I want to show you."

She followed him curiously down the stairs that led to the backyard and stopped short at the sight in front of her. Steve had obviously gone out of his way to make the night special, setting up a small table under two wide oak trees in his yard. An impromptu date.

The table was already set and ready to go, the flames of large candles fluttering in the breeze. Alba couldn't help the speechless look on her face.

"This is beautiful. You did this?" He gave her a short nod. Good Lord, was this man winning her over.

"Tony was babbling the other night about us and I realized how I'd never even taken you to dinner. I know it's not as good as the real thing, but I wanted to throw something together after everything that happened today."

Steve looked at her face carefully, trying to gauge her reaction to his first attempt at real romance.

"This isn't as good as the real thing…It's _better_." He couldn't help his giant grin as she turned and hugged him. "I love it. And think of all the privacy we'll have. If we lock our phones in the house maybe we'll be able to get through this meal."

She sat at the table and waited expectantly as Steve brought their dinner out back. Alba was expecting some form of takeout, but he did okay for himself.

She got a whiff of the roasted chicken and gave him a disbelieving look. "I thought you said you could't cook."

He shrugged. "I said I couldn't cook very much. I can make the basics." She couldn't help digging right into her steaming food and groaning.

"This is really good. Who knew Captain America could cook?" Steve grinned and shook his head.

"I could never get used to that name." Alba suddenly realized that she had never questioned him about his job. She had an Avenger sitting in front of her, and suddenly the questions began running through her head in a never-ending stream.

"So. The whole Cap thing. I have questions."

"Shoot."

"Is the shield as heavy as it looks?"

He sputtered a laugh. "Not really." He looked into the house thoughtfully. "Wanna find out for yourself?"

Alba set her fork down and gave Steve a wide-eyed look. "You brought it with you?" He disappeared into the house and emerged a moment later, the circular disk fastened to his arm.

Alba could only gape as he stopped before her and placed the shield in her hands. She turned it this way and that carefully, half scared it would start flying off like a possessed boomerang.

"I can't believe I'm actually holding this." She said with awe. "I saw you beat up those aliens with this on the news." She gasped as she remembered another one of her burning questions. "Aliens. Were they as absolutely disgusting as they looked on TV?" She pretended to shove an imaginary microphone in Steve's face as he chuckled quietly.

"Well…yes. They're really slimy, and kinda smell like—" Alba held up a hand to stop him in his tracks.

"Say no more. We can finish this conversation after the food is gone." Cause she was really enjoying the meal after not eating all day, and she'd be damned if he ruined it.

"Are you sure?" He asked innocently. "Because I have the best description for the rotting smell of the—"

"You're about to get this shield thrown on your face." Alba warned, pretending to spin the thing like a frisbee aimed at his head. Steve gave up with a laugh, holding up his hands innocently.

"Fine. I'll tell you later. But that's not how you throw it." He came to his feet and took the shield back, demonstrating how he threw it.

"You have to throw it from your core. Like this," Alba observed carefully as he demonstrated, the muscles in his shoulder and arm rippling.

"Right. One more time?" Steve repeated himself slowly, making sure she was keeping along, and then stopped abruptly, giving her his best disapproving look. "You're not even paying attention."

"Sure I am," Said Alba seriously. "Your bicep has never looked better."

He grinned despite himself and gave up trying to teach her, taking a seat at the table and resuming his meal. They ate in silence for a few minutes until he spoke up again.

"I wanted to ask you something." Alba looked up and nodded at him to continue. "I was invited to the Mayor's annual charity ball last month. All of the Avengers were. I was wondering if you'd like to be my date."

Alba froze, then gave him a slow smile. "Funny that you ask that. I was invited last week after winning Johanna's case. I guess the Mayor wants me to speak with some of his councilmen about the case. I don't see why we can't go together." _But as what?_ Alba wondered. She didn't want to push him into a relationship, but where was this going? Not wanting to spoil the evening by what might've been a touchy subject, she finished her food and helped him clean up. An hour later, she found herself back in the guest bedroom next to Steve's, reading a new book she'd picked up before bed.

It was a tradition of hers to read before bed, a way to fall asleep easier without having to stare up at a ceiling. It worked like a charm, and she was out in no time.

Alba must have fallen into a deep sleep, because she was having the most realistic dream she'd ever had.

"Alba." Steve's profile came into focus as he placed a hand on her arm, rousing her. "Alba. Wake up."

Wait a second.

This wasn't a dream.

She sat up slowly, trying to rub the sleep out of her eyes. Something wasn't right.

Steve looked tense, face pinched as he glanced at the door.

"What's going on?"

"Someone is outside." Her blood froze. "I don't know who it is, but I have to go check. It's probably nothing." But he had the shield by his side, and a small handgun in the other. Clearly, he didn't _think_ it was nothing.

He saw her gaze tracing the weapon and placed it in her hands. "You know how to use one, right?" She nodded slowly, silently thanking her detective father for always training her on gun safety.

"Good. I'm going to go outside and make sure the house is secure. Here," He said, helping her up. "Sit in the corner and wait until I come back. Stay away from the windows, and shoot anyone who comes through the door." She blearily followed his directions, sitting facing the door with a gun trained in front of her.

It took a minute for the sleepy haze to leave her. What the _hell_ was going on? As the reality began sinking in, she fear in the pit of her stomach started to grow. She glanced down at her stomach and bit her lip. What if someone was here to hurt her? Or the baby?

Her oversensitive hearing picked up on the slow creaking of feet on wood as they trailed down the hall. Down to her.

Alba took a steadying breath and raised the handgun, trying to steady her shaking hands as someone on the other side of the door fiddled with the lock. Whoever was breaking in was clearly adept at picking locks, because the door gave in with ease, swinging open as a pair of boots because visible in the moonlight glow.

Before she could pull the trigger, a loud _woosh_ filled the air as Steve's shield came flying through the doorway, dropping the intruder on the floor with a solid thud and a pained groan.

Steve leaped through the door seconds later, tacking the man on the ground as he fidgeted.

"I should have warned the suit." The man grumbled, writhing in pain. Why did that voice sound familiar?

Alba fled to the bedside table and switched on the light, stopping short when she laid eyes on the mysterious intruder.

" _Tony_?"

* * *

I am soooo sorry I skipped a chapter this week! I was in a bit of a writing slump for this chapter, and getting it out was HARD. Also my Etsy shop has been picking up, so that's been taking up some of my time.

 **Anyway, what do you guys think Tony is up to?**

P.S. Chapter 10 is already halfway written. We should be going back to the 2 Uploads/Week thing we had going on :)


	10. Chapter 10

Alba and Steve sat across from Tony with identical, disapproving expressions. After establishing that there was no real danger, the trio had moved downstairs to the living room, where Tony now lounged opposite of them. He tried to look sheepish as he iced his bruised back.

"You know, I always wondered how a shield could cause that much damage," He groaned. "Now I know."

Steve clenched his jaw, refraining from pointing out that that had been his most inaccurate throw in years. If he had hit him squarely, his friend would have probably ended up paralyzed.

"What are you doing here?"

Tony hesitated before answering. "I was worried about you."

Steve resisted the urge to snort disbelievingly, and settled for giving him a grim shake of the head. "You weren't worried. You were curious."

His friend shrugged innocently. "Maybe a little. But can you _blame_ me? A few weeks ago you start disappearing suddenly, skipping out on missions, and then you show up with a lady friend. What am I supposed to think?"

" _Nothing_. There's a reason why I haven't told you anything, and you should be able to respect that." Alba sat silently, not wanting to get caught up in the fringe of this grave discussion. Looked like Tony Stark has boundary issues that he was desperately trying to deny.

"Look, I'm just trying to look out for you, okay? You're just so…trustworthy, Steve. This isn't the forties anymore, you can't just believe everything people tell you." Steve leaned forward in his seat and gave his friend a confused look. Clearly there was something else at play he didn't know of.

"What are you talking about?"

Instead of answering, Tony glanced at Alba and then turned to his friend. "I need to speak with you. Alone." He emphasized, giving her a pointed look. She stared blankly, too tired to care what he was going on about.

But Steve did take exception to it, slinging his arm around Alba's shoulder stubbornly and holding her close. "Whatever you have to say to me, you can say it in front of her."

Stark gave him a disbelieving look, but acquiesced at the last second. "Fine. Did you know that _she_ ," He said, stabbing a finger in Alba's direction, "Is pregnant?!" Her head snapped to attention. How the hell had he found out? She had been discreet, and so had Steve.

"How do you know that?"

"Turns out your Doctor's servers aren't that secure. Oops." He wan't the least bit sorry.

Alba inquired, taking a deep breath and counting. The last thing she wanted to do right now is go into one of her mother bear rages.

"You hacked your way into my medical records? How dare you?"

Tony scoffed and turned to look at her with narrowed eyes. "How dare I? How dare _I_? How dare you try to pull one over on Steve!" Tony misinterpreted the horrified look on Steve's face and continued his tirade. "I found out you were dating some fancy lawyer up until a few months ago. You didn't even tell him you were having his baby. Sounded real surprised on the phone." On the phone. _On the phone_. The words echoed in Alba's head with alarming clarity. She suddenly felt like throwing up.

"You called my ex? Why would you do that?! Marcus didn't know because he _isn't the father_."

Tony scoffed and gave her a hard look. "So what? Steve's your baby daddy?" He said sarcastically, glancing at his friend jokingly. It was clear he was waiting for Steve to declare his innocence.

But Steve was somber as he meet his gaze. Tony looked between the two of them for a moment, took in their tired expressions, and then turned to give Steve a horrified look.

" _You're her baby daddy?_ "

Silence.

Tony took their silence for admittance, staring at them in disbelief. "Of all people…oh my _god_."

"This isn't how I wanted you to find out."

"Oh, you mean you _planned_ to tell me? Maybe when you had a bundle of joy in your arms already?" Tony stared off into the distance in amazement and then started laughing.

"I just can't believe the irreproachable Steve Rogers knocked someone up. They had birth control in the forties, right?"

Steve threw his head into his hands and groaned. He didn't want Tony's judgement. He didn't want his cutting, witty remarks. He didn't want to be anymore afraid than he already was.

"It's called _privacy_ , Tony. I was going to tell you when I felt ready to tell you. Do you really think that its okay to sit there and turn our lives upside down? To scrutinize every part of Alba's life? This might be a game to you, but it isn't to us. We're having a family, and yes, maybe we didn't plan this, but we're sure as hell making sure we're doing our best."

Tony looked down at his lap silently for a moment, properly chastised. "I was just trying to look out for you."

Steve just shook his head. He had to end this conversation before he felt like anymore of a jerk. "I know. But turning our lives upside down and then jumping to conclusions isn't the best way to do that." He gathered Alba up and helped her to her feet, leaving his friend to spend the night on the couch. "…We're going to bed. Goodnight."

Upstairs, Steve sat beside Alba as she laid in her bed. She yawned, barely keeping her eyes open, and reached up to smooth the line between his brows.

"Oh, God…what a train wreck. Sorry you had to put up with him."

"It's okay." She assured him. "This is our life now. Our family."

Steve raised his brows and gave her a tired grin. "This really _will_ be our family. God, can you imagine it?" Alba replied with a slow chuckle, yanking on his arm until he laid down in the bed right next to her. She cozied up into the crook of his neck and breathed in his clean, comforting scent.

"We'll be fine. We just have to make sure we keep Peanut as far away from Tony as possible." Steve grinned at Alba's nickname for their baby. Peanut.

"Yes. The last thing we want is for 'Uncle Tony' to rub off on her. Or him."

Manhattan, New York | Four Days Later

The meeting was almost at an end when a knock came to the door. Alba finished up the last of her notes and glanced up to find her assistant staring at her expectantly by the doorway.

"Ms. Herrera, Mr. Stark is here for you." Alba stared at the older woman, dumbfounded. She almost didn't notice the other sets of eyes staring at her in astonishment. Apparently Stark was a big name around here.

"I'm sorry, what?" It couldn't be. But Agnes repeated herself with the utmost patience.

"Tony Stark is here to see you. I asked him to wait in your office." Well. It really was him. Alba came to her feet reluctantly and tried to avoid meeting the curious stares from her colleagues.

"I'm sorry gentlemen, but I'm going to have to cut the meeting short. Please feel free to finish up without me, I have all the information I need." She glanced over at her client and gave him her most professional smile. "Please don't hesitate to call me if you have any questions, Mr. Carruthers."

Alba found Stark seated next to her desk, leaning over to look at the papers she'd left out curiously. She closed the door with more force than necessary and took quiet joy in the way he almost jumped out of his skin.

"Are you here to investigate my job? See how you could invade my privacy once more?"

He stood as she came around her desk and took a seat, regarding him through narrowed eyes. It was the firs time she'd seen him since the stunt he pulled, and this time she was wide awake and pissed.

"No. If I wanted to investigate your jobs I'd probably just hack the servers. You people keep an electronic copy of everything nowadays."

"What are you doing here, Stark?" Alba bristled.

"Psh, just call me Tony. All my friends do, and we're practically like family. Literally."

Not helping. Alba reached for the phone and gave him a warning look. She could have security up here in less than a minute. "Start talking."

" _Okay_. I just—I'm already nervous as it is and I'm trying to apologize and you're not making it any easier by looking at me like you're planning to chop me up in tiny little pieces."

She raised her brows. "You're here to apologize?" He gave her a short nod.

"I just wanted to say that I'm really sorry. For everything. Turning your life inside out, invading your privacy, telling your ex about your pregnancy. For accusing you. The whole thing. It's just that… the Avengers are the only good thing I've ever been a part of, and they're like my family. They're all I have, and sometimes I get very overprotective. And sometimes I forget. You know—I just forget that you people—" He stopped, groaned, and threw his head in his hands in frustration.

Alba was tempted the throw the apology back in his face, but she sensed he really was trying to be genuine. She could never be deliberately cruel, so she decided the help the poor man out by finishing his wordy apology.

"You forget that non-Avengers are also real people?" Tony's head snapped up and he took in her grin with a sigh of relief.

"You know, that part sounded a lot less offensive in my head." And just like that, the tension in the room began to diffuse. Alba leaned back in her seat and shook her head disbelievingly.

"You're a trip, Tony."

"Trust me, kid. I know." He stared into his lap, began to realize something, and then leaned down to retrieve a brown folder. He plopped it on Alba's desk and pushed the papers towards her.

"The second reason I'm here today."

She eyed the folder suspiciously, turning it over in her hands.

"What is this?"

"That was Steve's special request of me. He's still so mad, he won't even talk to me. But now he's somewhere in Hong Kong fighting bad guys and he's had a brilliant idea. He thinks it would be best if you switched over to a private medical firm."

"A private medical firm?" She said disbelievingly, flipping through a staged welcome packet about said medical firm. This was for the rich, famous, and important.

"You think it's probably a bit much, but I think he's right. I mean, if I hacked your medical records, someone else will, too. You're vulnerable. It's just a matter of time before you end up with a target on your back."

She wanted to protest, but Tony had a point. The less information was available about her pregnancy, the safer they would be. But that didn't mean they were going to be completely safe. "Will you still be able to hack my records again?"

Tony hesitated before answering. "…No. And not for lack of trying. I've started to think they don't keep any electronic records. It's the only thing that makes sense." He said thoughtfully.

"Some of my clients are attended here. I don't get it, I'm pretty sure there's a waiting list for this." She murmured, glancing down at the medical forms she was supposed to fill out ASAP.

Tony meet her eyes and gave her a wide, proud smile. "Last I heard the list _was_ a mile long. Which is why I stopped by there this morning personally and procured all the documentation." Of course. No one said no to Tony Stark. "Besides, I'm pretty sure this is the only thing that will get Steve to forgive me."

Alba couldn't help smiling at Tony's misery. "Is it really that bad?"

He gave her a hopeless look. "He's worse than a nagging wife. Up until he left last night he wouldn't even look at me. Worst silent treatment of the century." He glanced at the door and then gave her a what-the-hell look. "I'd taken to wearing the Iron Man suit at all hours because I was pretty sure that vibranium shield was going to smash through one of the walls and kill me." Alba couldn't help the peel of laughter that bubbled out of her mouth.

"I'm sorry, but you had that coming."

"Yeah, whatever. So are you in?"

Alba sighed, but started filling out all of the paperwork anyway. "Fine. But if you hack anything of mine ever again I _will_ haul your ass to court. I don't care if you're some part of my dysfunctional MTV family or not."

* * *

So the baby is out of the bag!

 **Did you think Tony's reaction was too much? Was Steve too harsh? Do you guys Alba will be in any danger?!**

You guys know I love hearing your theories so let me know! I will be replying to all of the reviews from this week and last week tomorrow!


	11. Chapter 11

Alba sat at her mother's kitchen table, hands wrapped around a warm cup of tea as her mom fiddled around in the kitchen with her own mug.

"I'm so happy you finally took some time to make the drive up here." The older woman gushed, finally coming around and sitting in front of her daughter.

They were spending some time catching up before her older sister showed up with her two kids. Alba had to get the news out to her mom now that she had her alone. She took a deep breath as she wondered for the thousandth time just how she was going to do it.

She wished she could talk to Steve. He'd been gone for almost two weeks on a mission in southeast Asia with some other members of his team, and according to Tony he was 'dark', which meant no phone calls or outside communication.

Alba's mom, Marlena, put down her cup resolutely and gave her daughter a thorough stare. She fidgeted uncomfortably as her mom's gaze lingered on her face.

"You look different…like you're glowing."

"I've just…been trying this new facial in town. But I did meet someone new. Through work. Sort of." Alba babbled. Her mom took the bait, arching her eyebrows delicately.

"Tell me."

"His name is Steve. He's a military man." _I mean, it's not like it's a lie_ , Alba told herself.

Marlena clapped her hands together and smiled. "You'll have to bring him around sometime." She gave her daughter a long, doting look. Alba felt guiltier by the second, having to physically bite her lip to keep her mouth shut.

"Your father would be so proud of you, _mi amor_. You're a big lawyer know, putting all these criminals in prison. They were talking about you on the news a couple of weeks ago, during the last trial. Your face was on NBC!" Alba laughed nervously at her mom's excitement. Would she still be happy after what she had to say?

"Mami…before Mere comes, there's something I need to tell you."

Her mother's smiled dimmed. "Don't talk like that, you're scaring me."

Alba took a deep, calming breath. It's not like she hadn't done this before. "I'm pregnant."

Silence.

Her mom blinked. "You're what?"

"I'm pregnant."

" _You're what?!_ " Alba flinched as her mom screamed in her face.

"Okay, I think you heard me that time."

"You're pregnant? How can you be pregnant?!"

She ran her hands through her hair, giving her mom a nervous look. "Well, when two people love each other, or get drunk—really drunk—"

"That's not what I meant!" Marlena shrieked. "You're not married. You just broke off your engagement, Alba. Oh, having a child out of marriage." Alba rolled her eyes and resisted the temptation to remind her mother that this was the 21st century.

A thought occurred to Marlena. "Do you even know who the father is?" Her mom fanned her face. "We're gonna end up on Maury." Alba sputtered a laugh, stopping short when her mom glared at her.

"Calm down, Mami. I know who the father is. It's Steve. I was just telling you about him."

Marlena's head swiveled wildly. "So where is he?! He's a man to get you pregnant, but he can't even come and meet your family? At least Marcus would've shown his face."

Her daughter bristled. "He couldn't come because he's on an assignment."

"So he's deployed? How did he get you pregnant if he's deployed—"

Alba's patience snapped. "He's not deployed! He's on an _assignment_. I know he would be here if he could. And yes, maybe we're not married but we don't have to be. We're still having a baby. You're going to have one more grandchild, congratulations!"

Alba left her mother wide-mouthed at the kitchen table and stomped out of the kitchen, using the back entrance of her old childhood home and trudging into their backyard, taking a seat on the rickety swing her and her sister used to play on as children.

The large backyard was welcoming and silent, the refreshing crispness of autumn cooling Alba's flushed cheeks.

Her phone began vibrating in her back pocket, and she almost ignored the call but changed her mind at the last second. She could use the distraction, anyway.

"Hello?"

"Alba." She froze and ripped the phone from her face, taking a look at the Caller ID.

"Steve? When did you get back?"

"Sometime last night. I tried calling your office to check in, but your receptionist said you took today off. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," She assured him. "I made the drive up to Connecticut today. Just told my mom."

He must have sense the tension in her voice, scratching the back of his head ruefully on the other end of the line. "That bad?"

Alba laughed dryly. "I'm sitting in my backyard all by myself because I can't stand being in the same room as her."

"Do you want me there?" Steve asked carefully.

"No. I'll be fine. If my mom doesn't come around by tomorrow I'll come home first thing in the morning." No point being where she wasn't wanted.

"Okay. I have to go in for a debriefing now. Call me if you need anything, okay? I can be up there in a couple of hours." Alba let out a small smile as she hung up, only to look up and find her older sister making her way across the yard.

She sat down on the swing next to Alba's without a fuss.

"What happened? Mami looks like she's just seen a ghost. She won't talk to me."

"It's because I told her something she didn't like." Her big sister gave her a rebellious grin. Always the one to challenge the rules, Mere reveled in pushing the boundaries.

"Are you retiring early? Taking a year to travel the world? Are you eloping in Vegas?"

"I'm having a baby." Alba said, avoiding her sister's gaze. She didn't notice the way Mere froze up and stared at her, bug-eyed.

Alba was startled out of her reverie as her sister threw her arms around her neck and pulled her in for a hug. She leaned back and stared down at her stomach with an amazed look.

"You're going to be a mom. Oh, Aly, I'm so excited." Mere started tearing up, which got Alba tearing up, and before either of them knew it, they were both crying in the backyard.

"How far along are you?" Her sister sniffled.

"I'm about twelve weeks. In a few days I'll reach thirteen." Alba said happily, her mouth curving up in a wide smile. "We went to our first ultrasound last weekend."

"Did you bring pictures?"

"Yeah, they're in the house. I left them in my bag." The sisters trudged up the stairs together and into the kitchen island where Alba had left her purse.

Her mom was in the other side of the house, entertaining her two grandchildren, Lucy and Ryan, and pretending her daughter hadn't dropped the biggest bombshell she'd had all year.

Alba presented the grainy, black-and-white pictures to her sister and they fawned over them together.

"Oh, it's so cute. How's the morning sickness?"

Alba shrugged. "I get a little here and there, but nothing that I can't manage. The waves of sleepiness that I get—that's another story. I keep falling asleep everywhere." They laughed, not noticing how their mom trailed behind them quietly until she spoke up.

"What are you guys looking at?" She asked innocently. Alba, always one to avoid confrontation, tried stuffing the pictures back in her purse. The last thing she wanted was for her mom to go off in another bout of anger.

But Mere snatched the pictures right back and waved them under their mother's nose.

"It's the baby. Aly had her first ultrasound last week. Look at the baby." Marlena's face softened. In the middle of this, there was an innocent baby. Not to mention her own, brilliant youngest daughter. _Her_ baby.

"Have you uh—had any cravings?" She said conversationally, feeling guilty for the way Alba glanced nervously in her direction before answering.

"I've been craving some beef stew." Marlena poked her head in the fridge and poked around, finding some frozen beef she'd gotten on sale and slapping it on the counter. She found the other ingredients and started cooking wordlessly. _If her baby had a craving, she was gonna get it._

"Stay for dinner, okay?" Alba nodded wordlessly as her mom got to work in the kitchen.

* * *

Hey guys! So, finally starting to get some of Alba's crazy family. For those of you missing Steve, don't worry! He'll be back next chapter!

Thoughts on Alba's family? Was her mom too much?

As always, I can't wait to hear back from you guys!


	12. Chapter 12

Late that evening, Alba tossed in her childhood bedroom, wondering about the odd evening she'd had with her family. On one hand, her mom still wouldn't really talk to her. On the other hand, she'd been quietly catering to her needs and making sure she was comfortable and well fed all day.

Alba stared at the light yellow bedroom walls, the cheeriest color she could think of when she was five, and fidgeted in her small full-sized bed.

Her phone began ringing with an incoming call. This time, she did look at the Caller ID, smiling uncontrollably when she realize it was Steve.

She answered quietly, mindful of her sleeping family down the hall. "Hello?"

"Hey. Did I wake you?"

"No. Surprisingly I didn't fall asleep as soon as my head touched the pillow." It helped that she took a long nap on her mother's couch while the stew was going.

"So, um. I kind of did something without thinking." He said nervously. Alba picked up on the edge of his voiced and tensed.

"What did you do, Steve?"

"Would you…Come outside." _Outside_? Alba jumped out of her bed and threw on her jacket, tripping into her slippers as she bounded down the stairs as silently as possible. After undoing the three locks on the front door (thanks to the most paranoid mother in the world) she swung it open to find Steve standing on the edge of her driveway awkwardly.

She didn't think twice before sprinting over and jumping into his open arms with a happy shriek, clinging to his neck as he lifted her up in the air. Steve's quiet laughter tickled her neck, and when she finally looked down and met his gaze, she lost her breath with a quiet _whoosh_.

God, she had missed him. She missed the mirthful way his eyes followed her around the room, and the way he pursed his lips when he was trying not to laugh at her antics.

She couldn't help leaning in for a kiss. A real kiss. Steve froze only for a second, before easing into her kiss and deepening it. He turned them around, pressing Alba against the cool metal of his pickup and nipping on the soft, fleshy part of her lower lip that always drove him crazy.

Alba sighed softly before breaking their kiss.

"We better go inside. If we keep this up we'll end up on the cover of US Weekly."

Steve followed her inside the small house, quietly tracing Alba's footsteps. They crept up the stairs together carefully.

"My mom and sister are down the hall," She whispered. "Watch the second to last step. It creaks." He kept up easily, turning right at the top of the stairs and into a small, yellow bedroom that had been overrun by furniture.

Alba sat on her bed and glanced up at Steve nervously, trying not to laugh as he closed the door behind him quietly. He looked extremely out of place in her old, frilly room. She didn't even think he would fit in her bed. Oh well. She hadn't seen him in nearly two weeks, and there was no way she would let him out of her sight for the foreseeable future.

Steve peered around the darkened room curiously, taking in all the trinkets strewn around and posters hung up on the walls. "So this is where you grew up?"

"Yes. My parents, my sister, and I." Alba had Steve join her in the bed and lay down. He took up all of the space, so she had no choice but to curl up into his side, placing her head on his shoulder and slinging her leg over his. He held her close, placing his hand on the small of her back and taking a whiff of Alba's clean, flowery scent. It was quickly becoming one of his favorite scents.

"What happened while I was gone?"

"Well. Last week Tony showed up at my job and groveled. I couldn't stay mad at him, of course. Today I told my mom and my sister everything. Mom was mad at first…but I think she's okay now. She's mad you weren't here, though."

Steve choked on a laugh, trying not to wake everyone down the hall. " _I'm_ the bad guy? You were the one that told me not to show up." Alba made an amused sound and slapped his stomach.

"I know. I just didn't want to complicate things so soon. You know with you being an Avenger and all…God, can you imagine? _Hi mom, this is my boyfriend-slash-baby-daddy, who is like a hundred years old, his name is Steve Rogers but you probably know him as a kickass Avenger who goes by Captain America._ " Steve couldn't help but let out a quiet chortle. He stopped to think for a second, then frowned in the dark room.

"For the record though, I'm not a hundred…I'm ninety-eight." Alba snorted.

"Okay, Steve. I'll make sure we throw you a big party for your centennial." She sat up suddenly and straddled him, smirking cheekily at the way he caught his breath and gripped her hips.

"Now it's my turn to ask all the questions if you don't mind, Mr. Rogers."

"I don't mind…at all." He groaned. "Is this an interrogation?"

"Yep." She pried his hands away, torturing him slowly as she forced him to keep his hands well away from her.

"Where were you these past weeks?" She asked, the picture of primness as she sat perched on his lap.

"That's classified."

Alba tutted, fidgeting on Steve's lap and pretending not to notice the growing firmness beneath her. "So uncooperative, Mr. Rogers." She slapped his hands away when he tried to sneak them around her waist.

Steve let out a frustrated groan before caving. "Hong Kong. Seoul. Then Tokyo." Alba rewarded him with a slow kiss.

"Sounds like quite a chase. What were you after?"

"Some type of electronic skeleton key. It could hack into comms and override keypad entryways. It's the reason we had to go dark. Last time it was used a bank vault was cleaned out in minutes. Tony suspected the next buyer was going after something more…deadly." He said ominously.

"What were they after?"

"Nuclear launch codes." Alba's blood went cold.

"But you caught the bad guys, right?"

Steve grinned and caressed the soft skin of Alba's neck. "Of course. I'm pretty spry for a ninety-eight year old man, you know."

"Oh, I _know_." He chuckled and pulled her down to finish what he started earlier, giving her a long kiss that sent a shiver running down her back. Alba entertained him for a long minute before breaking away and sighing.

"Steve. We have to talk about something really important."

"Hmm?"

"When are we going to have sex?" She had to bite her lip to keep from laughing when he choked. "I know that you're very traditional, and I love that. But it's been _months_ , Steve. And its not like we've never done it before. I mean, I'm already pregnant, for God's sake. All I'm trying to say is…we've been stuck at home plate for weeks when we've already done a home run."

Steve shook his head, speechless. "What's gotten into you?"

"I think we've established that it's what _hasn't_ gotten into me that's the problem." Alba said, laughing quietly at Steve's shocked face. She couldn't help herself from throwing out crazy one-liners to throw him off.

"We are _not_ doing this in your mom's house. _No_." Alba couldn't help teasing Steve just a little longer, giving him a slow grin before getting off his lap and curling into his side.

"Just you wait, Steven Grant Rogers. I'm going to corner you one of these days…"

"As long as it's not here, you can corner me as many times as you want."

Alba clutched the soft material of his hoodie as she settled in the crook of his neck. "I'm really happy you're home." She said quietly.

"Me too." He answered, pressing a kiss into her forehead, happy that he wouldn't have to leave her for a long time.

* * *

Happy Saturday everyone! Yes, this chapter is a little more cheeky than usual. Did you like it? Hate it?

I've actually been kinda nervous about posting this because it gets a little sexy. But fooling around is something people in relationships to all the time, and I think this will only bring them closer, RIGHT? :)

So as always, let me know what you think! Chapter 13 will be up in less than a week!


	13. Chapter 13

This had to be the most awkward lunch on earth.

Alba chewed on her sandwich dryly, having lost her appetite the minute she sat at the table across from her mother.

Steve sat next to her, silently eating his food and keeping his head down, pretending the uncomfortable silence in the room wasn't his fault. Alba reached under the table and gave his hand a hand a supportive squeeze.

She glanced across the table and froze the moment her eyes fell on her mother, who had given up eating and was staring at Steve suspiciously, as if he would burst into flames the moment she stopped looking.

Alba felt a wave of pity for Steve as glanced up and froze, staring at Marlena like a deer in the headlights. Her mom and sister had barely kept it together after being introduced, and now her mom was staring at him like he was the devil in the flesh.

This wouldn't do.

"Mom? Can I talk to you, upstairs?" Marlena blinked slowly, giving her daughter a hesitant look before nodding and slowly ambling up the stairs.

Alba waited until the door to her bedroom was closed before whirling around on her mom.

"Could you possibly _be_ any worse?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about the fact that you're staring at Steve like he's going to burst into flames any second!" Marlena raised her hands defensively.

"Well he's the one with fire coming out of his feet!"

Alba's brows furrowed. "What are you talking about?"

"The red one. The one that flies everywhere. That's him, right?"

She sat on the bed beside her mom defeatedly, quietly groaning and throwing her arms over her face. "That's _Iron Man_ , _mami_. Tony Stark."

Marlena looked at her daughter curiously. "So which one is he?"

"He's Captain America." Alba explained patiently, taking a deep breath as her mom looked more and more confused by the second.

"Which one is that one?"

"The one with the shield, mom."

The light went on in her mother's eyes. " _Oh_. That's the one that's really old, right?" Alba laughed weakly.

"Yes. But don't tell him that. Could you please be nicer to him?"

Her mom gave her a guilty look. "I'm sorry. It's just that everything is changing so fast—you're having a baby. You're really pregnant."

Alba rested a hand on her stomach fondly. "Is it so bad?" Her mother hesitated before answering.

"Of course it's a good thing. It's just…you've always been my little girl, my wallflower. And now you're going to have a family of your own. You're going to be a wonderful mother, Alba." She swiped at her eyes inconspicuously, trying to dry the tears that had suddenly welled up.

"You know…if your father was alive, he would have been happy." Alba sat up straight and met her mother's watery gaze.

"He hated Marcus. Always said he was too stuffy and fake." The two women shared a smile until a soft knock interrupted them. A second later, Meredith poked her head in the room and glanced between the two of them with furrowed brows.

"You two made up yet? Steve got a phone call. He's driving to the city but he wanted to tell you goodbye in person before leaving." Alba thanked her older sister and went after Steve, finding him pacing by the bottom of the stairs.

Alba couldn't help grinning at the nervous expression on his face. "Tony called, didn't he?"

Steve's shoulders relaxed. "At least he didn't sneak into the house unannounced."

Alba laughed as she imagined her mother beating Tony Stark over the head with her frying pan.

"I'm sorry I can't stay longer."

"Don't be," Alba assured him. "My family is best dealt with in small doses. Would you mind giving me a ride home?"

Steve gave her a surprised glance. "You don't want to stay here until tomorrow?"

"I've had enough lectures for the next few weeks. Besides, I need to run over some work stuff at home. Mom's friend asked me to look into her son's arrest. Something about inconclusive evidence or something."

Steve nodded, satisfied, and helped Alba load up her stuff in his truck. Alba bid her mom and sister a hasty goodbye, promising to send them pictures of every ultrasound and baby related symptom, and go give them a call for Thanksgiving.

The commute into the city went by in a blur. Before Alba realized, she stepped down from the truck onto solid concrete. She looked around the cool garage slowly, stopping short when she spotted the neat little line of supercars near the entrance.

"Jesus…how many Avengers are there, exactly?" Steve followed her gaze and grinned.

"Six of them are Tony's." Well, that made perfect sense.

Steve guided Alba to his floor, promising that whatever Stark needed him for would not take too long. The large, spotless apartment looked more like a penthouse that an apartment, covered in floor-to-ceiling windows with breathtaking views of the New York skyline. Alba lingered by the window, too amazed to resist the view of Manhattan. The setting sun lit the skyline on fire, a burnished orange that glowed from all angles. If she looked carefully, she could probably spot her law firm.

Both heads swiveled towards the door when a loud, insistent knock filtered into the room. The person on the other side of the door refused to wait, instead settling for tapping away on the door relentlessly.

Steve sighed and looked at the ceiling, steeling himself before welcoming their latest guest.

Tony wasted to time strolling into the room. He glanced at the couple, eyes narrowed, barely reigning in his impatience.

"I said I needed you upstairs ASAP."

"We only just got here."

Stark tutted and waved his friend over to the door. "C'mon. Everyone is waiting. By the way," He mentioned, pointing at Alba. "I need her, too."

Alba couldn't resist looking over curiously, noticing the way Steve stepped in front of her protectively, as if he could shield her from whatever harebrained plan his friend had in mind.

"Whatever you think you need her for, forget it. We are not going to drag her into any of our messes."

"Relax, old man. It's not like I'm going to drag her out into the field. We could use the legal council. Besides, who better than lawyer lady to keep our dirty secrets? She's family now. Not like she can tell on us."

Steve pursed his lips and refused to meet Tony's eyes. He had a uneasy feeling about bringing Alba into his profession, about all the dangers that could suddenly find her and their baby. But ultimately, it wasn't his choice. He knew her well enough to realize that trying to handle her would only end in disaster. For him, anyway.

So with a hefty sigh, he turned to face his girl and raised a brow questioningly.

Alba's eyes shimmered with their usual good humor, and Steve sensed he had made the right choice.

"I don't mind helping. In the interest of full disclosure though, you should know I specialize in criminal law. You could probably used an experienced international law attorney."

Tony cocked his head for a moment before shrugging. "A lawyer is a lawyer, right? Come _on_."

Alba hadn't thought about how nerve-wrecking it would be to stand in front of a table full of avengers until two minutes later, when her legs suddenly seized up as four pairs of eyes flitted towards her.

She spotted the Falcon sitting off to the left, accompanied by no other than the Black Widow. On the right were the 'new' Avengers. She didn't quite remember the names of the young brunette sitting next to the red…thing. Alien. Android?

Alba trailed Steve meekly and sat at his side, trying to contain her anxious fidgeting in a way that wouldn't draw attention to herself.

The control room she sat in was surrounded by a myriad of screens. Some contained maps, other ran a series of codes, and others ran a slideshows of potential targets. Tony ambled to the head of the table and raised his hands ceremoniously, not blinking an eye when all of the lights in the room dimmed. He immediately jumped into what could only be described as a debriefing, talking about a missing person who had been taken from the American embassy in Paris.

It all sounded very interesting, except Alba had no context so she understood very little of what was being discussed. Steve sat opposite Tony, occasionally asking clarification and glancing at all the screens in front of him, forming a plan of action in his head.

"Alright. This is going to have to be a covert mission. No one can know we're involved until we're well out of the situation. We do all investigation off-site, once we have a location on the target its a simple extraction and we're on our way. Sam and Nat will go out in the field, we'll stay behind and give them intel." The two nodded and began getting ready to leave the room, chairs scraping back against polished floors.

"What about me?" Tony asked, glancing at his nails nonchalantly.

"What _about_ you?"

"I should be in the mission."

Steve gave Tony an amused look. "You will be. Off-site." Tony gave him a surly look. "I said covert, Tony. Last time I checked Iron Man flying around the Eiffel Tower is most definitely _not_ covert."

Tony ran a hand though his hair and sighed, settling his gaze on Alba's apprehensive one. "Back me up here, Lawyer lady."

Alba choked back on a laugh. " _This_ is what you called me here for? He's right, Tony. From a legal perspective, the least attention incurred the better. More attention means more proof that can be dredged up in court." The group immediately fell into a squabble, torn between letting Tony have his way or running the operation covertly. Alba rose to her feet and slipped out in the commotion, leaving the heated conference room and strolling into the quiet lounge area outside.

She poured herself a steaming cup of tea and made herself comfortable, knowing it would be a while before they came to any sort of agreement. She started replying to e-mails to pass the time, stopping short when she spotted a pair of boots in front of her.

"Hi—did you want to sit?" Alba made room on the modern leather sofa for the young brunette standing before her. The seat beside her dipped as the young woman sat down carefully.

"Have they finally finished, then?"

"No. I left because it is too loud. Can't hear myself think around them sometimes."

"Are they always like that?"

Wanda tilted her head thoughtfully before answering. "Only when Tony is here."

Alba grinned and continued to answer her e-mails, enjoying the comfortable silence the woman next to her provided. The past two days with her loud family had felt like an eternity. Her productive spell was suddenly broken when her phone began ringing vibrating with an incoming phone call. She quickly accepted the call when she realized it was her assistant.

"Hi, Agnes."

"Hello, Miss Herrera. Thank goodness you answered, I was afraid I wouldn't be able to reach you." Alba's brows furrowed as she wondered about all the things that could have gone wrong at the firm during the couple of days she'd been out. She could hear the bustle of afternoon Manhattan faintly on the other end of the line.

"What's up?"

"I'm calling because a courier just came by to drop off documents for the Jenkins trial, but he's scheduled to come in tomorrow morning. You'll need them if you're going to get any good work done."

Alba sighed. _Nothing major_. "Thank you so much for calling me, Agnes. You must be leaving the office now, right? Can I meet you at the Starbucks across the street? I can get there in ten."

"Of course, Miss Herrera. I'll see you there." She ended the call and glanced at Wanda, who was engrossed in all the colors of the sunset.

"Could I ask you for a favor?" The brunette turned to look at her curiously. "I have to run to work for a second. If Steve wraps up before I get back, just let him know I'll be back soon, okay? I'm gonna be somewhere over there…" She pointed out over the sweeping views of Manhattan in the general direction of the Upper East Side.

Wanda cracked a small grin and nodded. "I will tell him."

Alba jumped to her feet and was on the elevator before finishing the phone call, jamming the lobby button until the elevator doors closed and started sliding down smoothly.

She hopped on the first available taxi she could hail, ignoring the way the autumn afternoon chill nipped at her cheeks. After hastily directing the older man sitting behind the steering wheel, she made herself comfortable in the word leather seat for the ride.

There was something calming about taxi rides. For Alba, the fact that she was able to sit and look out a window without being expected to do anything was relaxing on its own. Adding on the exciting bustle of New York City unfurling before her eyes only made it better.

Agnes was waiting outside the coffee shop when Alba finally got there, five minutes too late.

"So sorry I'm late. There's some sort of construction on fifty-third."

Her assistant waved her off and placed a thick cardboard envelope in her hands. Alba took the heavy package and turned it over, noting the note with her name and time stamp on the front.

"Here—I got you some tea. It's too cold not to drink something hot." Her assistant was right, of course. The cold wind whipped at their faces, unrelenting and chilling to the bone. It didn't matter that they were surrounded by hundreds of people rushing home after a long day at work.

They drank their tea across the street from the firm as the last of the evening workers trailed out of the building. Alba soaked in the sights and sounds of lively Manhattan, where she was surrounded by chaos and yet felt perfectly in place.

Her phone pinged with an incoming message. She reached for it blindly, expecting a confused text from Steve. Instead she found a voicemail that'd been forwarded from her office.

 _Huh. It must be important if its showing up after-hours._

Alba put the cool metal of the phone to her ear, pressing her hand over her other ear in hopes of dampening the sounds of the throngs around her.

" _You don't know who I am…you ruined my life. And you're gonna pay, little lawyer. You think you can keep me away from Jo? From_ my _woman?_ " Alba felt a chill run up her spine. " _She will_ never _escape me. Too bad you'll never be able to see it._ "

The sudden peace of their afternoon was shattered by a thunderous boom overhead. An invisible force pushed Alba sideways, stealing her breath as she collided with a length of scaffolding. Her head smacked into the long piece of metal, an explosion of pain forming on her temple.

It took her a long, dazed moment for her to gather her surroundings and pull herself out of the crush of people stampeding away from the explosion. Pieces of broken glass, metal, and plaster rained down onto the screaming mass on the street. People ran in all directions, some screaming, others barely keeping their composure. Alba knew she should leave. Find someplace safe. But her feet were glued to the ground and her fingers would not release the frozen piece of scaffolding she was clinging to well after the first responders arrived at the scene.

"Did you see anyone suspicious at the scene?"

"No, officer. I've answered this question three times." Alba explained impatiently, wishing the persistent cop would finally leave. She was sitting in the triage of the nearest hospital, head throbbing from the fall she took during the explosion. She ended up with two small stitches on her temple, and until the painkillers kicked in, a massive headache.

"Alright, alright." The man grumbled, tucking away a small notepad into his pocket. "I just want to make sure I have all pertinent details. I'll contact you if I have any more questions." Alba tried to afford a friendly smile at the officer as he left her room, leaving her with nothing more than the resounding heartbeat of her baby.

After learning she was pregnant, the emergency doctor on call decided to place Peanut under observation for two hours before he discharged her. _Not going to disagree with that_. Alba shifted uncomfortably in the small, stiff hospital bed. No matter how hard she tried to rest like the nurse told her to, the thick monitoring bands wound around her stomach stopped that form happening.

Alba reached for the clunky remote and flipped through the channels, wondering when she would be able to get her hands on a phone to call Steve. Her own phone was sitting in her bloodied purse, shattered beyond recognition. It was not coming back to life.

"This was clearly a terrorist attack!" Alba stopped flipping and skimmed the headlines. _EXPLOSION IN UPPER EAST SIDE_.

Jesus. What a mess. Her head started throbbing violently as she remembered the cryptic voicemail she listened to before the explosion. She was sure that Gonzales was behind this. But how would she even prove it? The man was already in prison. He had nothing left to lose.

He was trying to kill her. What would he do when he realized he failed? Attack her house? Kidnap her like he kidnapped Joanna's family? Alba shivered and wrapped the rough hospital blanket over her shoulder for comfort.

"—Sir, I'm sorry, but you are not allowed to be here!" She sat up straighter at the commotion outside the door. Had he come to finish the job already?

"My girlfriend is in there. Alba? Alba!" Alba tried to scramble to her feet, fighting the mass of cables hooked on to her stomach.

"Steve? In here!" He appeared a moment later, head swiveling wildly as he searched her out. His relief was palpable as he crossed the small room in two steps and gently inspected her.

"You're okay?" She nodded, hiding her face in the supple leather of his favorite jacket.

"Thank goodness." He glanced down at the contraption strapped across her stomach and gave her a nervous look.

"Is something wrong with the baby?"

"It's just a precaution. So far the we're doing fine."

The nurse chose that moment to storm through the door and give Steve a hard look. "Sir, you are not supposed to be here—" Alba leaned around Steve to meet the nurse's eyes.

"He's with me. We're waiting for news on the baby." The nursed glanced down at the monitors strapped to her stomach and then glanced at Steve's tense face, deciding at the last second to back off.

"Fine. But the other one stays outside." She marched through the door as Alba gave Steve a confused look.

"The 'other one'?"

"Tony. He helped me track you down after the explosion." _Of course he did_.

Steve pulled a chair and sat beside Alba and gave her a blank look. "What happened?"

She hugged herself, unsure on how to answer. What the hell _had_ happened? One minute she was standing on the street warming up with a steaming cup of tea, the next she was laying on the ground with shrieking people all around her.

She glanced over at Steve when he reached over to give her a hand a gentle squeeze. The addictive heat of his skin brought her back to the moment. "I went to the Starbucks next to the firm to pick up some documents from my assistant. Next thing I know, I get a strange phone call. Then there's a huge explosion."

Steve leaned forward slowly. "You think the phone call had something to do with the explosion?"

"It sounds crazy to say this, but yes. The man who called is someone I put in prison weeks ago. He was promising revenge. Seconds later the law firm blows up. It isn't a coincidence." Alba's head started throbbing again. "He wanted to kill me. What if he goes after my house next, Steve?"

"You're staying with me until we figure this out, okay? Try to get some rest." Alba nodded and closed her eyes. Now that Steve was here to look over her, the warm blanket of sleep claimed her easily.

* * *

Hey guys! It's been two weeks since the last upload! So sorry about that. Holidays and family stuff has kind of taken up most of my time. I've tried to change up my writing style a little bit, let me know what you guys think!

Let me know what you guys think of that explosion!


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